The Nanny
by acidonix
Summary: Annabeth Chase is 23 and attending Graduate School at Columbia University. She is fired from her internship, and Piper finds her a job nannying for Percy and Rachel's little five year old girl. Eventually, the line between boss and friend is blurred, and Annabeth finds herself in the middle of drama she didn't ask to be in.
1. First Day

Chapter 1

Annabeth

"Annabeth, come on. It's not that desperate of a situation." Piper said, picking up a fry and dipping it in ketchup.

"Easy for you to say, you have a steady income." Annabeth rolled her eyes, taking a sip of water. They were sitting at JG Melon on the Upper East Side, gouging themselves in greasy food and trashy tablecloths.

"You lost your job, not your life." Piper said, giving Annabeth a look.

"First of all," Annabeth started in between fries, "It was a paid internship, not a job, and second, I walked out because the guy was a dick."

"Okay, well, you just need to look at this as an opportunity." Piper suggested. "You're still going to grad school at Columbia, you're still going to get your degree, so who cares what some uptight CEO was like, okay?"

Annabeth sighed, and straightened her shirt. "You're right. I could get another internship, or a job."

Piper nodded. "Exactly. Jason actually has a friend, he's our age but super successful. His dad owns some international corporation, and the guy, Percy, manages the American side."  
Annabeth frowned. "I hate those kinds of businesses, you know that."

"Not exactly what I meant." Piper gave her a wary look, which was never good.

Annabeth sighed. "What did you mean?"

"He has a five year old kid. His wife owns a gallery in West Chelsea, so she's out of the house more than he is." Annabeth opened her mouth to protest, but Piper held up a hand. "Just hear me out. The kid, a little girl, is super cute. Her name is Grace. You'd love her. Their current nanny is moving back to the West Coast after she finishes the summer out."

"I hate kids." Annabeth said, finishing off the last of their fries.

"Annabeth, no you don't." Piper said, rolling her eyes. "At least think about it, please. They're nice people."

Annabeth didn't say anything, just pulled out her debit and paid for her half of the food.

-0-

Annabeth groaned, tempted to throw her computer out the window. She was currently sitting in her 2,000 dollar a month studio in Soho that she wasn't going to be able to afford pretty soon if she didn't find a stupid job.

The thought of the nannying job had crossed her mind too many times.

 _You're a working woman_ , part of her argued. The other part just kept thinking, _70,000 a year!_

Annabeth groaned again, throwing her head back against her couch. There was nothing available out there since she was so late to the game. Graduate school at Columbia started back up in less than two weeks and she hadn't made her second payment yet. Most college level jobs had already been snatched up at this point, and she was either underqualified for everything or it was totally beneath her. Plus, she had to afford school and have time for it all at the same time.

 _Nanny!_ That stupid voice said.

Unfortunately, it won. Less than five minutes later, she was on the phone with Piper.

"So, listen." Annabeth started. "I've been thinking about that nannying gig, and I think I'd like to take it. I mean, an interview obviously."

"Eek!" Piper squeaked through the phone, and Annabeth winced, pulling her plaid blanket closer. "Percy and Rachel are going to be thrilled. I'll send you their number now."

"Okay, thanks. See you Saturday." Annabeth said, feeling the slight buzz of a text on her ear.

"Yep, love you."

"Love you too." Annabeth said, hanging up and staring at the number. A few texts and exclamation points later, Annabeth had an interview set up with Rachel and Percy Jackson.

-0-

Coffee at ten on Sunday, gods what was Annabeth thinking. In what world could she swing drinks at ten on Saturday at a club in a skimpy dress into coffee exactly twelve hours later in casual business clothes.

She hopped on the 4 and headed uptown to the Upper East Side, praying that she could walk fast enough in black heels to get their on time.

Annabeth got off at 77th, secured her bag, and checked her watch. Six minutes until she was late, one minute until her preferred time of arrival. Adjusting her sunglasses to try to hide her baggy eyes, she headed over to Joe Coffee.

She spotted the two sitting outside almost immediately. They were pretty hard to miss. Bright green eyes, and Rachel's hair was just as wild as Piper had described it.

Annabeth straightened her back, and walked over to them, trying to look professional.

"Hi." She said in her classic, I'm classy, positive, strong, and sexy all wrapped into one voice.

"Hey!" The guy - Percy - said smiling and standing up to shake her hand. For a second, Annabeth was stunned. His eyes… they were gorgeous. Deep green with flecks of gold, calming like the ocean. "You must be Annabeth Chase, Piper's friend."

His voice shook Annabeth out of her daydream. "Uh, yeah, nice to meet you guys." Great, Annabeth, nice start.

"Rachel, hi." The red head stood up, shaking Annabeth's hand. "Nice to meet you too."

"Please, sit down." Percy said. Gods, he was attractive. "So, tell us about yourself, where you went to school, grew up. Oh, and that cappucino's for you."

"Oh, thanks." Annabeth said, smiling slightly. "Yeah, so I grew up in San Francisco, my dad was a professor, my stepmom was an accountant. I decided to move to New York for school to study architecture, so I got into Columbia. Graduated four years ago, and I started graduate school two years ago, part time."

"Wait, you went to Columbia?" Percy asked.

"Yeah," Annabeth laughed nervously.

"That's so crazy, same. Graduated 2013, though." Percy said. "Anyways, what are you studying?"

"Architecture." Annabeth answered, sitting up a little straighter. At least that was something to be proud about.

"Oh, wow, that's so neat." Rachel spoke up. "Our daughter will love that, she's very into art and drawings."

Percy grinned. "I'm very outnumbered at the house."

Annabeth chuckled. "Trust me, I know the feeling."

"So," Rachel said. "Why do you want the job?"

Annabeth took a deep breath. "Look, I'm going to cut the bullshit. I quit my amazing internship and can't find another one. I'm sure Piper already told you. It's not that I've always dreamed of being a nanny. But, I would be good at it. I'm firm and organized and extremely responsible. I've always been mature for my age, and I practically raised my little brothers."

Percy and Rachel exchanged a look, and Annabeth watched Rachel give her husband a slight nod. "Okay, you're hired." Percy said.

Annabeth tried not to laugh. "Really? I mean, you don't have any other candidates, or…"

"Do you not want the job?" Rachel asked with a smile.

"No!" Annabeth said. "No, I mean, of course not."

"Good." She said. "So, if you can come over at nine tomorrow, I'll be home in the morning and we can chat some more, and get you acquainted with Grace. If everything goes well, you can start on Tuesday."

"Yeah, sounds great!" Annabeth said, standing up and shaking their hands again as they exchanged numbers. "See you tomorrow."

They waved goodbye, and Annabeth went back underground, in a much better mood than before.

-0-

Monday rolled around, and Annabeth was feeling a lot better in life. If there was one thing Annabeth hated more than anything it was the feeling of insecurity in her world. Tight on money, behind in school work. Everything in Annabeth's life needed to be in order.

She made her way up to the top floor of their high rise on Park and 72nd. The building was absolutely gorgeous, and Annabeth was sure their penthouse was even more beautiful.

The elevator dinged, Annabeth straightened her blouse, and was greeted by a cute little girl with raven curly hair and bright green eyes.

"Hi!" She bubbled, reaching up to Annabeth.

Annabeth reached down and scooped the child into her arms. "You must be Grace, right?"

"Yep." Grace smiled, showing off a missing front tooth. "Annabeth?"  
"Yeah, that's me." Annabeth said, holding back a laugh.

"I see you've already met Annabeth." Percy said, coming out of a room on the right side laughing. Grace reached for her dad, and Annabeth passed her over.

"I'm five." Grace said, holding up five fingers for Annabeth to see.

"You are?" Annabeth said. "That is so cool." She looked up at Percy, who was laughing, but they locked eyes and froze.

Rachel's heels came clicking out of the direction Percy came from, and the two of them cleared their throats, blushing. "Everything alright out here?" Rachel asked.

Luckily, Grace responded. "Yep! I was telling Annabeth how I just turned five."

Rachel laughed. "Yes, she is very excited." She kissed Grace on the cheek. "Aren't we baby girl." Grace giggled, like it was the funniest thing, and Annabeth couldn't help but laugh along with her. She really was the cutest thing.

"Okay, I gotta go lovebug, but I'll call you this afternoon." Percy said, kissing her curls.

"Okay." Grace said, hopping down and moving on to her mom. "Love you."

"Love you too." He said, ruffling her curls. "Love you." He whispered quietly to Rachel, pecking her on the lips. "Have a good day." He said turning to Annabeth, smiling, and stepping in the elevator.

"Okay!" Rachel said, dusting off her hands and picking up Grace. "Should we give Annabeth a tour?"

"Yeah!" Grace said, pumping her little fist in the air.

"Okay, let's go." Rachel said, turning to face the living room. For the first time that morning, Annabeth could appreciate the beauty of the place. The living room had floor to ceiling windows with a perfect view of Central Park and the skyline beyond it. "So this is the parlor. We usually just host in here, or anywhere downstairs really."

Rachel led her across their open floor plan, showing her the twelve seater dining table, huge white kitchen. Everything was white, with accents of crazy art that Rachel had picked out through the years. There was a guest bedroom downstairs, where Annabeth would stay if she needed to stay over at any point.

"Okay, so upstairs." Rachel said.

"My room!" Grace said with glee. "It's purple."

"The best color." Annabeth said, smiling at her.

"There are two staircases, one through the kitchen and the spiral one that leads to the living room. The spiral one goes straight to the hallway that has our master in it, so you won't really ever need to use that one. There's a door that connects the master to our other upstairs, but it's easier access through the kitchen."

Annabeth nodded, soaking it all in as Rachel led her through. "This is Grace's room, first one on the left."

"Can I show Annabeth my doll?" Grace asked.

"Maybe later." Rachel said, and moved on to the next door. "This is the movie theater. Grace is allowed one hour of screen time a day, and half an hour on school days."

"That's my couch, over there." Grace pointed out a couch in the back that had a bunch of stuffed animals on it and blankets.

"Yeah?" Annabeth said, and Rachel smiled at Annabeth.

"She won't sit on any other one." Rachel laughed, leading Annabeth into another room. "This is the exercise room. Feel free to use whenever, Gracie loves to work out with us so she will gladly come in with you. And this is the last room, it's empty for now, but hopefully we'll have a little crib in there soon." Rachel said, blushing slightly.

"You guys are trying?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah, we are." Rachel said. "Hopefully."

"That's great." Annabeth said, smiling at Grace who was making a silly face at her.

"Okay, so that is the tour. Let's go downstairs and talk logistics." Rachel said, and thank god Rachel was here because Annabeth never would have found her way back downstairs.

"So it will normally be a 7-5 job. Get here at seven, Percy and I will leave for work, and then Grace's kindergarten starts at 9 and goes until 1. You'll have chores to do during that time, like the store, or projects around the house, picking up the dry cleaning, all that stuff. Then, Grace will have her own chores she needs to do immediately when she gets home. After chores comes snack. Then you guys can hang out here, go for a walk, whatever. We'll get you a debit card for all this, I already have one in the works, it should be here by Wednesday."

"Okay, sounds good." Annabeth said, trying to soak it all in.

"Sorry, that was a lot of info at once." Rachel said, laughing. Grace was opening up a cabinet below, and Rachel noticed fast. "Grace, no." She sighed, picking the little girl back up again. "She's learned how to open the child safety things on everything lately, so we need to get around to moving stuff higher."

Annabeth laughed. "I'll be sure to watch out for that."

"Yeah, yeah anyways, there will be a schedule typed out for you everyday, so don't worry about anything. I'll send you the weekly schedule on Sunday night. We also don't have any staff, we don't really believe in having help, except for some cleaning people come through every other week, we just don't have time to do the deep cleaning." Annabeth nodded, trying not to be overwhelmed.

"Okay." Annabeth said, ruffling Grace's hair. "We'll have a good time this year, won't we."

"Yeah!" Grace said, wriggling out of her mom's arms and running outside onto their terrace. "Annabeth come look!"

The two of them followed her out there, as she pressed her little nose against the glass, staring out at the busy streets. It was crazy how loud it was, even way up here.

"Okay baby girl, mommy has to go." Rachel said, leaning down and giving Grace a kiss. "I'll be back in a couple hours, I just have a meeting on the Lower East Side. Oh, and before I forget, you'll get 1200 a week, I'll write you a check every Friday. Pay's not up for discussion, so I hope that's good."

"Yeah, no issues here." Annabeth said.

"Okay." Rachel said. "Bye Gracie, love you."

"Love you too Mama." The girl said, her nose still pressed against the glass.

"See you soon." Rachel said with a smile, and soon it was just Annabeth and Grace.

"Okay, Gracie." Annabeth said, picking her up and carrying her inside. "What do you want to do?"

"Central Park." She said. "I have a route."

Annabeth laughed. "Oh, you do, do you?" She said, tickling her slightly.

Gracie squealed with delight. "Stop, stop!"

"Okay, okay. Let's go get your shoes, yeah?" Annabeth put Grace down, and followed the energetic little girl up the stairs. Annabeth smiled to herself as she heard her giggles. This wouldn't be as boring as she thought.


	2. Men in Suits

Chapter 2

Annabeth

Gracie was an absolute sweetheart. By Tuesday evening, Annabeth felt like she had been Grace's nanny for the past three years.

"Okay, your dad's gonna be home in just a few minutes, can you help me clean up the stamps?" Annabeth asked as she closed up the ink and helped Gracie stack her fairy stamps neatly in the box.

The elevator dinged, and Gracie suddenly lost all interest in the cleaning. "Daddy!" She yelled, running out into the hall to find her dad.

"Hi, lovebug!" She heard Percy say as she put the box back in the cabinet. She came around the corner, watching as Percy kissed his little girl lovingly on the head. "You two have a good day?"

"Yeah!" She said, grinning. "We went to the movies and Central Park and we got Waldo's for lunch."

Percy laughed, turning to Annabeth. "All the chores are done, too?"  
"Yeah, she finished them before we left this morning." Annabeth said.

"Great, thanks." He said as Grace wriggled out of his arms and upstairs. "Personally, I don't really care, it's summer, but Rachel's kind of a freak about it."

Annabeth nervously chuckled, not really sure what to say. Percy shook his head. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"No worries, I should be going though, I have a meeting with my advisor." Annabeth said, grabbing her purse.

"Has school started already?" Percy asked as he pressed the elevator button. He was wearing a navy blue suit, and it didn't help that Annabeth had always had a weakness for men in suits.

"No, but I need to try and rework my schedule to night classes so I can stay until five everyday." Annabeth explained, trying to push those stupid thoughts out of her head.

Percy just nodded. "Well, thanks for today. We'll see you tomorrow." He said, smiling down at her as Annabeth stepped into the elevator.

-0-

"I'm fucked." Annabeth said as she, Piper and Hazel indulged themselves in Cosmo's at Gallow Green, a rooftop bar in Chelsea that they had discovered last fall.

"I thought you got a job?" Hazel asked, sipping her drink.

"I did." Annabeth said sullenly.

"So... what's the issue?" Piper asked, taking a bite of the pizza they were sharing.

Annabeth didn't respond, just downed the rest of her drink. "Excuse me!" She called over a waiter. "Hi, another round please."

"Certainly, miss." The waiter said, and grabbed their empty glasses.

"Isn't the kid cute?" Hazel asked.

Piper smirked. "That's not her issue. I mean, I don't blame you. He's totally hot."

"Piper!" Annabeth said, slapping her best friend's shoulder. "Keep your voice down."

Hazel shook her head. "I'm not following."

"Annabeth has the hots for her boss." Piper said, stifling a laugh.

"Jesus, you're embarrassing. I don't have the hots, I just… find him attractive." Annabeth suggested, trying to shrug like it was no big deal.

"Oh, Percy Jackson." Hazel said, like that explained everything. "The whole world's attracted to him."

"They've had problems with nannies before I've heard." Piper laughed.

"Guys, seriously, I can control myself." Annabeth said, gratefully accepting the second cosmo.

"Can he?" Piper said, laughing.

"Piper, gods." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Aren't you and Jason friends with them?"

"Yes, just teasing you." Piper said, still laughing.

"Okay, but Annabeth is hot." Hazel pointed out. "And totally single."

"True." Piper said, and she and Hazel burst out laughing again

"You guys!" Annabeth said, but pretty soon she was joining in on their giggles.

-0-

It was late Thursday afternoon when Gracie brought it up. They were cuddled up on her couch, watching the credits roll through on the second episode of her Disney show. Grace had been unusually quiet today, but Annabeth hadn't wanted to pry. She had only known the girl for less than a week.

"I don't think my mommy loves me." She said, playing with the floppy ears on her elephant stuffy.

Annabeth froze. "What?"

"She's never here." Grace said, not meeting Annabeth's eyes.

"Oh sweetie." Annabeth said, stroking her curls. "That doesn't mean she doesn't love you, you're mom is just super busy."

"Daddy is always here." She said.

"Well, your dad just has an easier schedule than your mom, but she still loves you." Annabeth said, struggling to find the right words on how to deal with this.

"I haven't seen her all week though." Grace said.

"I know, but she still loves you, okay?" Annabeth said. "Trust me."

"Okay." Grace said. "Can we go play in my room?" She asked, suddenly unfazed by her previous comment.

"Yeah, let's go." Annabeth said, shaking her head as the little girl ran out of the room.

After playing with dolls and a small snack, Percy came home at five like he always did. He gave Grace a kiss, said "Hi, lovebug." and asked Annabeth how the day was.

"Good." She responded, glancing at Gracie who was playing with her dad's tie. "Hey Grace, why don't you go finish your snack, your dad will be right in."

Grace nodded and ran into the kitchen. Her dad frowned. "Everything okay?"

"Um, yeah, sort of." Annabeth said, suddenly not sure what to say. "Look, I don't really know how to put this, but Grace told me today she doesn't think Rachel loves her. Obviously, I told her that wasn't true, but I just thought you guys should know."

Percy looked half worried, half irritated. "Okay, thanks for telling me." He shook his head, sighing. "She hasn't been home all week. I told her this would happen, but she seems to think just because she's Grace's mother their relationship would always be good. I don't know, sorry." He said, giving Annabeth a small smile. "Overstepping my boundaries again."

"It's okay, I don't mind." Annabeth said, smiling back. They locked eyes again, and Percy cleared his throat.

"Um, so listen, Rachel and I were invited to the Hampton's next weekend by another couple, Chelsea and Jake. They have a house out there, and two little boys a year younger than Grace that will be under your care too. We were wondering if you were available to come with? No big deal if you're not, but the whole weekend will be two thousand, if you take it." Percy asked, pressing the elevator button for her again.

"Yeah, I'd love too." Annabeth said.

"Okay, great." Percy said, smiling as the elevator dinged open. "I'll tell Rach to text you with more details."

"Great." Annabeth said, stepping in. "See you tomorrow."

Percy waved his hand in response, and Annabeth groaned as soon as the elevator door closed. What was she thinking?

-0-

The next few days passed without any more awkward moments between her and Percy, thank gods. She got the key to the Audi SUV they bought her and her debit card came, so outings with Grace became that much easier. She had quickly realized that Grace was not into the whole walking thing - what five year old was, really?

Wednesday morning she had gotten dressed, put on a white shift dress because she had to take Grace to her school orientation today, and walked out the door, prepared for a normal day at the Jackson house.

That was definitely not what was going on when she got there. Rachel and Percy were screaming at each other, Grace was crying, and even the family's floofy little pomeranian dog was barking at the chaos.

When Grace saw Annabeth, she immediately reached her hands up. Percy and Rachel stopped fighting, and Rachel let out an exasperated sigh, running her hands through her hair.

"I'm so sorry you had to see that." Rachel said, smiling apologetically. "I need to go to work." She came over to Annabeth and kissed her daughter on the head. "Bye Grace." She said, and strutted out of the room without a second glance at Percy.

Percy was still steaming, pacing back and forth between the windows in their front room.

"Have you finished your breakfast?" Annabeth asked the little girl.

Grace shook her head, and Annabeth wiped away a tear. "Okay, why don't we go do that." She set Grace down at her chair, poured her some more milk, and debated whether to go out or not to talk to Percy.

Eventually, the stupid side of her won out. "I'll be right back, okay?" She told Grace and she nodded, happily munching away at her cereal now.

Annabeth wandered out of the kitchen to find Percy still, staring out at Manhattan.

"Sorry." He spoke up.

"It's okay." Annabeth said softly. "Are you…"

"I'm fine." He responded, but when he looked at Annabeth she could tell her was clearly not okay. He had huge bags under his eyes, like he hadn't slept at all last night, and his tie was a complete wreck.

"Okay." Annabeth said quietly.

Percy ran a hand through his locks, sighing. "Sorry." He said again. "She just… things have been rough ever since I brought up what Grace said."

"Oh." Annabeth didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry."

Percy chuckled. "Annabeth, it's not your fault." He shook his head. "Gods, I shouldn't even be telling you this."

Annabeth nodded. "You shouldn't." She agreed.

Percy gave her a strained look. "I'm going to go upstairs for a little, take a nap before I go to work. We didn't sleep much last night."

"Okay, don't worry about it. Grace and I will do something fun." Annabeth said, wringing her hands.

"Okay, thanks, I'll be down in a few." Percy said. He headed up the stairs, stopped halfway, sent Annabeth a weird look, shook his head, then kept going.

Annabeth sighed, burying her face in her hands.

"Annabeth!" Grace called.

Annabeth shook her head, trying to clear her mind. "Coming!" She walked back into the kitchen, and started putting the dishes away from breakfast. Grace wanted to go get a smoothie, so Annabeth and her walked a couple blocks to the closest Juice Press, and when they got back Percy was in the kitchen, tie fixed and suit pressed, using the Keurig.

"Is it five?" Grace frowned, confused.

Percy laughed, picking her up. "No, lovebug, Dad is just leaving."

"Oh." She said. "Are you coming to school?"

"No, I have to go to work." He said, sending Grace an apologetic look. "Sorry."

"Pleaseeeee." She begged. "You and Mommy never come."

Percy's expression turned pained. He turned to Annabeth, who was watching from her spot in the doorway. "What time is it at? Jeez, sorry that's embarrassing."

Annabeth laughed, waving it off. "It's at eleven. We need to leave in about ten minutes though, the traffic is kind of bad today."

Percy took a sip of his coffee. "I guess I can swing it."

"Yay!" Grace exclaimed, jumping down from his arms and doing a dance. The two of them laughed, and Annabeth grabbed Grace's little arm softly to get her to calm down.

"Come on, go get your shoes on." The girl ran obediently up the stairs to her shoes, and Percy smiled after her.

"Okay, if you guys are good, I'm going to run to the store without her." Annabeth said, reaching for her shoes.

Percy laughed nervously. "If you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you still came. I don't really… I've never been. I'm not really good at these things. Fuck, I'm sorry."

Annabeth smiled. "It's okay, really. Of course I'll come with. Does Rachel usually do this?"

Percy shrugged, putting his coffee in a to go mug. "Rachel or the other nanny."

Annabeth nodded, grabbing her purse. "Grace, let's go!" She called up the stairs, and could hear the footsteps above her as she came running down. The three of them rode the elevator to the garage, and climbed into the Audi, Percy driving.

The school was a beautiful brownstone in the outskirts of the Bronx. To Annabeth, it seemed like a ridiculous amount of time to drive just for school, but Percy told her that Rachel had decided it was the best in the city.

"There's Amelia!" Grace pointed out, who Annabeth assumed was a friend from her preschool.

Grace ran ahead with her friend, and Amelia's mom was left talking to Percy and Annabeth.

"I'm Charlotte." She said, introducing herself to Annabeth.

"Nice to meet you." Annabeth said with a polite smile.

"How long have you been with the Jackson's?" Charlotte asked.

"About a week, actually, so not too long." Annabeth said.

"It's going amazing." Percy spoke up, smiling over Annabeth's head at Charlotte.

"You guys are so lucky. I have had the worst luck with nannies this summer. We've tried three." Charlotte said, waving to another friend she saw across the room. "Well, I'll see you guys soon. Annabeth, here." Charlotte slipped a business card out of her purse. "I'm sure we'll be in touch all the time about the girls, so here's my information. So nice to see you!" She said as she ran off to talk to the next gossipy mom.

Percy snorted. "Maybe it's her that's the issue."

Annabeth laughed, covering her mouth to try and not bring attention to them. They locked eyes, and not for the first time Annabeth felt frozen.

"Hello!" The kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Mannings, tapped the microphone to make sure it was on. The kids were seated up front, and Grace turned around to wave at them, grinning. "Welcome to Horace Mann, the very best college preparatory school in the nation."

"Jesus, here we go." Percy said rolling his eyes. Annabeth found herself laughing along with him again, earning many disapproving glances from the other moms and nannies.


	3. The Hampton's

Chapter 3

Percy

"Grace, please just buckle." Percy said, standing over his daughter squirming in her carseat as Annabeth tried not to laugh at the scene.

"But I want food now!" She said, glaring up at him.

"Grace, you had a sandwich at the orientation." He said, resisting the urge to yell or roll his eyes or snap at her.

"It was so gross, Daddy." She said, turning her attention to the seat and kicking it.

"Okay, well, Annabeth ate it, and I ate it, and that's what we ate for lunch. If you're hungry, you should have eaten your sandwich."

She flopped over onto the seat, and Percy pressed two fingers to his temples. "If you sit up, buckle, and stop whining, we can stop for ice cream on the way home."

Grace immediately popped up, grinning, tears gone, and Percy shook his head. She buckled, jumped up and down in her seat, and said. "Let's go!"

Percy looked at her in disbelief, but Annabeth poked his arm. "Hey, let's go while she's happy."

Percy nodded, and climbed into the driver's seat where Annabeth was laughing under her hand. Percy chuckled slightly. "Nice parenting skills, I know." Percy said.

Annabeth took her hand away, still smiling. "I'm not judging, better she gets ice cream than the other parents sit there and judge you for not having a perfect robot child."

Percy laughed. "Very true." He said, merging onto the freeway. They were quiet for the rest of the drive, until he arrived at Sedutto's.

"Okay." He said, finding a pretty easy parking spot considering the lived in New York. "Ready?" He asked Grace, who was luckily still smiling back there.

"Yep!" She said, hopping out on the curb. She took Annabeth's hand. "This is my favorite ice cream place. There's another one, um… Daddy, where's the other one?" She asked, twisting to look at him as he walked a step behind them. Annabeth smiled, fixing a stray hair that was tangled in her ponytail. Percy got distracted, staring at the way Annabeth cared about his daughter.

"Daddy!" Grace said, tugging on his hand with her free one. "Where is it?"

"Oh." He breathed, aware of the fact that Annabeth and him were holding her hands and they looked severely like a couple with a daughter. "Um, it's a few blocks down."

"Yeah." Grace said, like she understood what that meant. "Anyways, this place has my peanut butter crunch, I love it. The other one…" She rambled on, but Percy's voice was caught in his throat as he and Annabeth made eye contact with each other over her head. Her cheeks were red, and he knew he should look away, he needed to, but her eyes were wide and her hair was slightly frizzy from the humidity, and she was biting her lip subconsciously, and-

"Watch where you're going!" An angry New Yorker said as Percy slammed into him.

Grace laughed. "You hit that guy."

Percy chuckled nervously, pulling on her ponytail lightly. "Yeah." He said, not daring to glance back over at Annabeth.

-0-

Percy rolled over, away from Rachel as she softly snored. It had been a rough few days, especially after Annabeth had brought up the comment Grace made. He and Rachel had been fighting endlessly about it, and they were both exhausted from the effort.

How did Rachel think they should have another kid when they couldn't even support this one? She always argued that they were supporting Grace, that she had a better life than most kids. Rachel never understood that Percy was never talking about financial support.

Then, on top of all that, there were the thoughts about Annabeth. Percy was definitely not supposed to be having those. She was always showing up in those tight jeans and blouse that left so much to the imagination that Percy was dying to know. Her hair was curled like a princess' and her eyes were this beautiful stormy grey.

What scared him most, though, was that he wasn't just attracted to her for her body, or her hair, or even her eyes. He liked her laugh, he liked the way her eyes lit up when she saw his daughter, he liked her like the way he liked Rachel when they first started going out.

Jesus, fuck, he was screwed.

He never should have asked her to come to the orientation with him. He never should have suggested ice cream afterwards. He should have just let her do her job. It was freaking him out, too, that he had never really been the dad type until lately. Maybe it had something to do with Rachel not being the mom type right now, but Percy had suspected that it had more to do with the fact that he actually liked doing the dad thing with Annabeth. It was fun, the three of them out together.

Fuck.

The Friday they were supposed to leave before the Hamptons, Rachel was stressing out, Grace was fussy, and Annabeth looked overwhelmed. Apparently, she hadn't realized how dysfunctional the house ran when she wasn't here.

"Annabeth, can you help her finish packing." Rachel said, storming down the stairs. "I just can't deal with her anymore."

"Yeah, of course." Annabeth said, looking glad for the excuse to get out of there.

"That's embarrassing, Rach." Percy said, packing up the last of the food.

"Percy, that's what we pay her for." Rachel sighed, brushing her hair out of it's tangles.

"We pay her for that when we're not here." Percy said.

"Why do you even care?" She snarled, and Percy was about to retaliate when Annabeth came down with a happy kid, which Percy considered a miracle.

"Ready, baby?" Rachel asked, putting on her fake kid voice. She picked Grace up, and took some food and their bags down without waiting for Annabeth and Percy.

"Rough morning?" Annabeth asked.

Percy tried for a smile. "You could say that." He passed her a couple bags of food. "You can take these, they're a little lighter."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I'm offended."

Percy chuckled. "I'm sure." He said, getting the elevator for them. "I'm glad you're coming though, in all seriousness. I'm not sure I could handle her alone this weekend."

Annabeth laughed. "Well, I'm happy to be your wingman."

Percy gave her a loopy grin, then immediately regretted it. Did he just flirt with her? Were they flirting? No, she wouldn't be flirting with him. She wouldn't put her job at risk.

They were quiet the rest of the way down, and found Rachel buckling Grace into their family Audi.

"Annabeth, you can follow us in your Audi." Rachel instructed.

"I want to go with Annabeth!" Grace said from the backseat, reaching for Annabeth.

"Grace, stop. You're coming with Mom and Dad." Rachel said firmly, but Grace was still squirming.

"I'll meet you there, okay Gracie?" Annabeth said as Percy helped her put her bags in her car.

"I sent you the address in case we lose each other." Percy said, and she glanced down at her phone to make sure she had gotten it.

"Okay, thanks." Annabeth said, and started her car.

The drive was beautiful, as always. Percy found himself feeling infinitely lucky to live here, and he reached over to grasp Rachel's hand as Grace's little head fell against the window while she slept.

Rachel looked over at him in surprise, but she relaxed, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry I've been so neurotic lately." She whispered in his ear.

Percy didn't respond just lifted their intertwined hands, kissing them softly. He didn't really know what to say, but Rachel seemed to think that gesture was good enough since she snuggled her head into his shoulder deeper.

The Levin's owned a modern home in Easthampton, about a twenty minute drive from the home him and Rachel owned in Southampton. They usually spent their summers out here, but Rachel had decided her work schedule was too busy to leave. Percy was going to just go out with Grace, since he could usually work at home for a couple months, no problem, but Rachel had thrown a huge fit.

"Chelsea!" Rachel said in that weird voice all girl's used when they saw their friends. "Oh you guys look so good. The house is beautiful, as always."

"Thank you, you guys too! Grace is so big!" Chelsea said, wrapping Rachel in a hug. "You must be Annabeth, a pleasure to meet you." Chelsea said, shaking Annabeth's hand. "Come on, I'll show you your rooms." She said, leading Annabeth and Rachel deeper into their mansion.

Percy shook hands with Jake. "Nice to see you, man." Jake said, when there was a yell from the kitchen.

"Max, stop!" Adam, his twin yelled.

"Max, Adam, come here and say hi please." Jake called, and the two little kids came running out, sheepish looks on their faces.

"Hi, Grace." Adam said, and the two of them waved. "Do you want cake? We just baked it with Mommy."

Grace looked up at Percy, and he nodded. "One slice." She grinned, and ran after the boys.

Jake chuckled. "You have her trained well. Come on, let's get you a beer. You look exhausted."

Percy gave a slight laugh. "It's been a rough week." He said, gladly accepting the drink.

"Work, or…" Jake gave a slight glance towards the stairs.

Percy sighed. "We've been fighting a lot lately. She's been really absorbed in work lately, and it's just been taking a toll on the whole family, but especially Grace. Anyways, enough of that. We're here for a good time." Percy said, putting on a smile.

Jake chuckled. "Wanna watch some baseball?" He asked, and Percy nodded. He was in need of some guy time.

-0-

It was almost dinner time, and since Chelsea and Jake didn't believe in staff either, Rachel was busy helping Chelsea with dinner in the kitchen. Percy usually cooked at home, since his mom had taught him how to cook right, but Rachel always liked to do it when other people were watching. He and Jake were barbecuing out back, and Annabeth was upstairs with the kids, getting them cleaned up after she took them for ice cream in town.

"Go put your suit on, I'll finish up the burgers." Jake said. "We can get in the pool with the kids when they get down here."

Percy nodded, licking his fingers and headed upstairs. He dressed quickly, and was about to head downstairs when he decided to check on Annabeth. He knocked quickly, and when she didn't say anything, he entered. "Annabeth?" He called out.

"Oh!" She said, peaking her head out of the bathroom. "Sorry, I didn't hear you come in. I, um, well who cares." She stepped out in a red bikini and Percy tried not to stare. "What's up?" She asked, putting her old clothes in the laundry basket.

"Uh," Percy stuttered, trying to pick his jaw up off the floor. She was even more gorgeous than he thought. Her curves fit her lithe body perfectly, and Percy was having a very hard time keeping dirty thoughts out of his head.

"Sorry." She said, smiling sheepishly. "I learned this morning I didn't have a one piece, it's on my list."

"I wasn't-" Percy started.

"You were." Annabeth said, smiling. "But it's okay. Actually, do you know where any robes are? I forgot a coverup."

"Yeah, sorry, follow me." Percy said. "There's two in our room, but Rachel always brings her silk ones, so she never uses it." He passed her the fuzzy white robe and she took it gratefully, slipping it on.

"So," She said, tying the belt. "Did you need something?"

"Just wanted to check in." Percy said. "I mean, trips can be hard sometimes, you're around the kids more and everything, so…"

"Thanks," Annabeth said, smiling. "But it's going good. I love Grace, by the way, she's the sweetest thing."

"Yeah, she gets every-" Percy started to say, but he was cut off by his wife's voice.

"Perce, are you in there? I forgot my-" Rachel stopped short in the doorway."What is going on in here?" She asked, eyes narrowing.

"I'm so sorry, I just needed to borrow a robe, and-" Annabeth said, stumbling over her words.

"Rachel, it was nothing." Percy said hurriedly. "We should go downstairs, the kids are probably in the pool by now."

Rachel shook her head. "We will talk later." She said, looking pointedly at Percy. "I don't need another issue."

"Rachel, for the last fucking time, nothing happened with Liliane." Percy said exasperatedly. Annabeth slipped out, but Rachel was too infuriated with him to notice.

"Gods, Percy, the fact that your mind even goes there is a red flag!" She screamed at him.

"Look, I love you." Percy said, and he could see her features soften. "Not Liliane, not Annabeth. You, okay? You have nothing to worry about."

"I know." She melted, and Percy grabbed her, nestling her head into his shoulder. "I love you." She whispered, as he pressed a kiss to her head.

Rachel looked up at him, and kissed him, hard. When she broke away, Percy was grinning. "Wanna have sex?" He asked, and she laughed, clear and loud.

"Percy, come on." She said, slapping his arm playfully.

"What?" He asked innocently, attaching his lips to her neck. "It's been almost a week."

Rachel sighed, leaning into him and reaching for his swim trunks. "Quickly."

Percy grinned. "I can do that." He said, grabbing her ass, placing her on the bed, and sliding into her.

Fifteen minutes later, Percy was pulling his pants back up and Rachel was pulling down her skirt. Her face was flushed and she was glowing and Percy suddenly remembered all the reasons he had fallen in love with her in the first place.

She opened the door to go downstairs, but he stopped her. "I love you." He murmured one more time, and she smiled up at him, kissed him, and ran down the stairs.

The kids were already in the pool and Grace was splashing Annabeth who was sunning herself on a chaise lounge.

Annabeth laughed. "Hi, Gracie." She said, taking off her sunglasses and sitting up.

"Come in!" Grace said, splashing Annabeth again.

Annabeth stood up and Percy tried to block the thoughts out of his mind. Shit, he had just had sex with his wife, who he still loved. He shouldn't be thinking about her skimpy little bikini or her hair glowing in the sun, or… Fuck.

Grace suddenly noticed Percy standing at the edge as he picked up his beer. "Daddy!" She squealed. "Tell Annabeth she should get in."

Percy laughed as Annabeth dipped her toe in, shivering. "It's cold!" She complained.

Grace laughed. "Baby." She said, laughing her little head off. Annabeth gasped, starting to laugh for real.

"Grace, be nice." Percy said, but he was laughing too. He came up behind Annabeth quietly, who was still wrapping her arms around herself in an effort to show she was cold. He gave Grace a pushing motion, and she started laughing.

She squealed, giggling. Annabeth shook her head. "Grace, what is so-" Percy gave Annabeth a light shove, and she went tumbling over the edge with a yelp.

"Percy!" She spluttered, pushing her now wet curls out of her face. Percy jumped in after her, grabbing Grace who was laughing hard now, and pretty soon Annabeth was laughing too.

Once they had all calmed down, Grace grabbed a noodle. "Help me float!" She told Percy and Annabeth. Annabeth shook her head, smiling at him, then started to help Gracie. The three of them spent the rest of the evening splashing around.

-0-

The next day, Rachel and Chelsea had decided they were going wine tasting, and Annabeth was in the kitchen putting together a picnic for the Grace and her. Adam and Max were next door with their friends for the day, so Annabeth wasn't responsible for them.

"Looking for these?" Percy pulled out the plastic silverware as she opened every single wrong cabinet.

Annabeth took them from him. "Yes, thank you. What are you and Jake doing today?"

Percy shrugged, pouring himself more coffee. "Jake has to go to work, something came up. I'll probably hang out here, get some work done."

"What?" Annabeth said, stopping what she was doing. "You can come hangout with us!"

Percy waved her off. "No, I don't want to intrude." He said, shaking his head.

Annabeth scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, Grace is your kid. Besides, she'd have so much more fun with you there."

"Are you sure?" Percy asked, slightly nervous. It wasn't really that he felt uncomfortable around her, but he worried that he was too comfortable.

"Positive." She said. "I've packed more than enough food, so go get changed."

Percy started to grin. "Okay, I'll be right down.

After lathering Grace in sunscreen, successfully getting her dressed and out the door, they found a secluded spot on the beach. The waves rushed quietly on the shore, seagulls calling. There was another family down the beach, and their kids soft giggles echoed down towards them. The sun reflected in the ocean, and Grace immediately ran into the waves.

"Don't go too far!" Percy called out as Annabeth slipped out of her sundress. Of course she had to wear another stupid bikini, this one strapless and black.

Annabeth chuckled, settling in on the blanket next to him. "She loves the ocean." Annabeth commented, leaning back on the blanket and supporting herself with her hands.

"Yeah, she was excited to show you it." Percy said, laughing. "She thinks if she hasn't been there with you, then you haven't been at all."

Annabeth snapped her hair into a loose bun, a few curls falling out on the sides. Percy resisted the urge to tuck one behind her ear. "Do you guys have a house out here?"

Percy nodded. "Yeah, over in Southampton. I'm sure we'll be there with you at some point."

Annabeth was quiet for a second, slipping on her sunglasses. "It's a different life." She murmured, and Percy wasn't sure if she was talking to herself or him.

"I'm not always sure I like it."

She turned to face him. "Why not?" She asked.

Percy shrugged. "I didn't grow up like this. Lived with my mom in a dingy two bedroom apartment in the Upper East Side."

"I thought you worked for your dad's business?" Annabeth focused her attention back on Grace, who was currently picking up sand and letting it slip through her fingers.

Percy took to picking at the blanket. "He showed up when I was a senior. Got me a full ride to Colombia even though I was probably the worst student at my public high school. Offered me the CEO position the minute I graduated with my degree in Business Management."

Annabeth was quiet again.

"I'm not proud of it." Percy said softly.

"I wouldn't be either." She quipped back, and Percy found himself suddenly very appreciative of her transparent honesty. It had been a while since he had talked to someone who told him like it is.

"So," Percy said, anxious to change the subject. "How'd you end up in New York?"

She shrugged. "My dad and stepmom, they were horrible. Never wanted me. I was interfering with their perfect lifestyle, whatever. So I worked hard in school, got a 4.0, all that. I got a full ride to Colombia, and cut myself off from them."

"Do you ever plan on seeing them again?" He asked.

"No." Annabeth said firmly. "I told them I would make it on my own, and so far, I am."

Percy was about to respond when Grace came running up to them. "I'm hungry." She complained.

"You are?" Annabeth said. "Hold on, let's see what we got." She said, her serious demeanor turning into a smile once she saw Grace. She pulled out PB&J's, potato chips, fruit, a juice box for Grace and a bottle of white wine for the two of them.

"Good choice." Percy mused, picking up the glasses she brought and pouring.

Annabeth blushed. "Don't you think that's a little… inappropriate?"

Percy looked at her incredulously. "You brought it, didn't you?"

She blushed harder. "Yes, but before I knew you were coming."

Percy just took a sip, and passed her a glass. "Tastes good." He commented, and popped a strawberry into his mouth.

Annabeth shook her head, avoiding his eyes. "Grace, slow down please." She said instead, trying to get the five year old to avoid choking on her sandwich.

"Look!" Grace said, spitting the seed of a cherry as far as she could.

Percy ate a cherry and spit his seed, landing a little behind Grace's. Grace laughed like this was the funniest thing in the world. "Annabeth's turn!"

Annabeth just shook her head. "No way."

"Yes!" Gracie frowned.

Percy chuckled, giving her a light shove with his shoulder. "Come on, who's going to see you?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but she gave in, hers landing farther than both Grace's and Percy's. "Ha!" She said, giggling. "I beat you both!"

Grace giggled, and sat down in Annabeth's lap, giving her a hug. "Will you guys go swimming with me?" She asked.

Percy tucked one of her curls behind her ear. "Eat first lovebug, then maybe."

"Okay." Grace said, seemingly happy with that answer. They spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and eating, Grace perfectly happy to spend the day out there with the two of them. For the first time in a while, Percy was reminded of how easy and beautiful days like this were.


	4. Sortofkindofreally

Chapter 4

Annabeth

The day after they got back from the Hamptons, it was time for Grace to start school, but that was the last place Annabeth's mind was.

She was stressed, for one. Her first class was tomorrow, and she was starting to wonder why she had thought she could handle this job and school and studying altogether. Night class was probably the worst thing she had ever tried.

She had somehow turned into a mom these past couple weeks, and last night when she, Piper, Hazel, Jason and Frank had left the second bar they were at, she had asked if anyone needed to use the bathroom before they left. That alone worried her, but the idea that she actually enjoyed the whole kid thing, that she could now see herself doing it, worried her more.

Third, she had somehow fallen even deeper into the my boss is attractive and I drool over him everytime I see him club. She should have stopped it. She shouldn't have asked for a stupid robe. She shouldn't have talked to him like they were equals, friends. She definitely shouldn't have taken that glass of wine from him and gotten buzzed on the beach with his daughter.

"Annabeth!" Grace said, waving a hand in front of her face, snapping Annabeth back to reality. "Can I have orange juice, please?."

"Yeah, sorry." Annabeth said, going to the fridge and getting it out. "Is your backpack ready?" She asked, pouring it in Grace's favorite cup. It turned from green to blue when you poured cold water in it, and apparently that was the coolest thing about her day.

"Yeah." Grace said, stuffing another pancake in her mouth. "Did you know?" She asked.

Annabeth set her orange juice down on the table. "Did I know what?" She asked, leaning

over the island and tucking a stray curl behind the little girl's ear.

"Can you keep a secret?" Grace asked, giggling.

Annabeth laughed. "Sure. What's your secret?" She asked.

Grace leaned up out of her seat, whispering in Annabeth's ear even though nobody else was there. "Daddy likes blue food." She said.

Annabeth chuckled. "He does, does he?"

"Yep." She said, nodding and looking sheepish, like she had just told a horrible secret. "He makes, like, everything blue. Pancakes, drinks. Mommy hates it."

Annabeth smiled. "Why does she hate it?"

Grace shrugged. "She tells daddy it's childish." The girl giggled again. "I think it's funny."

"Yeah," Annabeth said, laughing.

"Okay." Gracie said, hopping down from her chair. "Can we go?" She asked, going to zip up her backpack.

"Yeah, let's head out." Annabeth said, swinging her purse over her shoulder and turning off the lights. "Do you have your shoes and everything?" She asked.

"Yes, come on!" Grace said, practically skipping to the door.

The drive to the school was long and boring, and traffic was horrible. She sat on the expressway for what seemed like hours, and Grace wasn't helping. She was bouncing up and down in her car seat, and asking "are we there yet?" every ten seconds.

They fancy school - that looked more like a private college than a kindergarten, and cost just as much too - had a drop off system, so Annabeth sat in a long line, following the traffic guy.

"Okay, you have your lunch and your backpack?" Annabeth asked, twisting in the front seat to see her. She had finally made it to the front after watching little kids climb painfully slowly out of their cars.

"Yeah." Grace said. "Amelia!" She screamed, rolling down the window and waving at her friend.

"Okay, have a good day!" Annabeth said with a smile, desperately in need of a second coffee and advil.

"Okay." Grace said, unbuckling and coming to give Annabeth a hug. "Bye!" She said, opening the door.

"Bye, sweetie." Annabeth said, waving to the teacher as she pulled away.

Halfway through her drive back to Manhattan,which had even worse traffic than going north did, Annabeth's phone buzzed. All she was doing was sitting there, so she checked it.

 **Percy: Hope everything went well at drop off. I have the check for this weekend, if you want to come by and pick it up. Rachel has decided she wants to pick Grace up from school on her first day, so after you are done with the store you are free to go home. I work at 41 Warren St., in FiDi. I'll be in the office all day, just let me know when you're close. Thanks!**

Annabeth groaned, hitting the wheel with the heel of her hand and accidentally honking the horn while she was at it. The guy in front of her rolled down his window and flipped her off. Annabeth stuck her finger out the window, yelled some inappropriate words at him that he probably couldn't here then went back to thinking about her problems. Was he trying to make life harder for her?

She debated calling Piper, but she wasn't always so helpful with these sorts of things. She had the motto of go for it, sex is good, give in, all those kinds of things. Annabeth decided on Thalia.

"Did you know my dad owned a plane?" Thalia mused as soon as Annabeth picked up. "I had no idea."

"I didn't, but it doesn't surprise me." Annabeth said. "Listen, I need a favor."

"I'm listening." Thalia said. "No, I don't need help, thank you though."

"Who are you talking to?" Annabeth asked, sipping her now cold coffee.

"The stupid lady in this stupid store. I'm dress shopping for my dad's 50th birthday _soiree._ " Thalia mocked, and Annabeth could hear her rolling her eyes. "What's up?"

"Meet me at Whole Foods on the Upper East Side?" Annabeth pleaded. "Please?"

Thalia groaned. "You know, if I was doing anything else other than shopping that would be a no."

"So… that's a yes?" Annabeth asked hopefully.

"Do me a favor in return?" Thalia asked.

"Sure." Annabeth said. "Whatever."

"Be my plus one to this stupid party my dad's throwing for his birthday. It won't be so torturous with you there."

"Fine." Annabeth sighed. "Meet me there in thirty minutes." She said, hanging up.

-0-

Thirty-one minutes later, Annabeth walked into Whole Foods, pushing a basket.

"You're late." Thalia commented as Annabeth found her by the fruit.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, pulling out the list Rachel sent her. "Barely." She said, picking up a pack of strawberries.

"So, first question. Why are we in a grocery store?" Thalia asked.

"My nannying job, remember." Annabeth said, browsing the different selections of lettuce.

Thalia started laughing, and Annabeth glared at her. "It's not funny." She said.

"Okay, okay." Thalia said, still snickering beneath her hand. "So what's wrong?"

Annabeth sighed, deciding on romaine lettuce. "Nothing's wrong exactly, I just…"

"You just what?" Thalia pried.

"If you were with your boss," Annabeth started, "Having a glass of wine would be inappropriate, right?"

Thalia shrugged. "Depends on where you're having this glass of wine. At a party, no, but while you're supposed to be working, definitely yes."

Annabeth groaned, picking up Grace's favorite granola. "I'm so screwed."

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong, or should I go back to my personal hell of shopping?" Thalia asked.

"I think I'm sortofkindofreally attracted to my boss." Annabeth said, trying to keep her voice down.

Thalia burst out laughing. Loud. "Thalia!" Annabeth hissed. "This isn't funny!"

She just started laughing harder. "Oh, it is. Very funny."

Annabeth rolled her eyes, getting the eggs, waiting for her laughing fit to be over.

Five minutes later, after her tears of laughter had dried, Thalia started talking again. "You mean like sex attraction, or…"

"Sex, obviously." Annabeth scoffed. "You know I don't do the whole love thing."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "Never say never."

Annabeth rolled her eyes again. "Anyway, that's not my issue. How do I stop it?"

Thalia snorted. "Annabeth, you can't just stop being attracted to someone. That's not how it works."

"Okay, so how does it work?" Annabeth asked.

"You have two options." Thalia said. "Fuck him or leave."

Annabeth huffed. "You're useless. I can't do either."

"Well, what did Piper say to do?" She asked, passing Annabeth the dish soap.

Annabeth sighed, pausing before she responded. "Fuck him."

Thalia chuckled. "Told you."

"Well, I'm not doing either." Annabeth said with finality. "Hasn't anybody ever talked about self control before?"

Thalia shrugged. "I've never needed it." She said, following Annabeth over to the self check-out. "Wait." She said, eyes wide. "Is he into you?"

Annabeth blushed. "No, of course not."

Thalia narrowed her eyes. "Really?"  
"Really." Annabeth said, blushing harder.

Thalia shook her head. "I doubt that, but whatever. Look, I've got to get back to shopping, the party's this weekend on Saturday. Do you need something to wear?"

"I can go shopping this weekend on my own." Annabeth said, scanning the last item.

"Sure? I can just have Venus find you something, she knows you well enough." Thalia said, putting a bag in the cart.

Annabeth thought about it for a second. "Okay, it would be easier, thanks."

"No problem." Thalia said, giving Annabeth a quick hug as they reached her car.

"See you soon." Annabeth said, waving, as she loaded the SUV.

"Have fun with your sexy dad!" Thalia yelled, earning a few stares. Annabeth just blushed, and didn't respond.

-0-

After a long internal debate in the Whole Foods parking lot of whether it was appropriate to go into his office, and how she should really start keeping her distance, she decided she needed the money after Piper texted her and asked if she could go get drinks tonight.

Gripping her black purse tightly, sunglasses on, she walked into the high rise.

"Hi," She said to the front desk lady. "What floor is Jackson Global on?"

"47." She responded, "Take the elevators on the right."

"Great, thanks." Annabeth said, politely smiling.

After riding the elevator with two other people in business outfits that cost more than her weekly paycheck, Annabeth was even more nervous and self conscious about being here.

As soon as the elevator opened, she was greeted with a too cheery front desk lady for a Monday, and a huge Jackson Global sign.

"How can I help you?" She asked with a huge smile.

"Hi, I need to see Percy Jackson." Annabeth said, fiddling with the straps of her purse.

The lady frowned. "I'm sorry, it looks like Mr. Jackson doesn't have any appointments today. Is it possible you confused the date?"

Annabeth blushed. "Um, no I-"

"Annabeth!" Percy's voice called out, the glass doors opening. "Sorry, Mary, she's with me."

Mary raised her eyebrows. "I see. Would you like me to put your office in meeting?"

Percy looked confused, but Annabeth sure wasn't and she was starting to sweat she was so flustered. "What? No, of course not, Annabeth will be here two minutes."

"Sorry about that." He said, holding the door for her. "All the way down the hall, on the left." He walked a step behind her, giving her directions. "She's nice, but she's a little judgy. How was everything with Grace today?"

"Good." Annabeth said, grateful to have anything to talk about other than the fact that his receptionist thought that he was fucking someone other than his wife at the moment. "She was excited, there wasn't an issue."

Percy chuckled. "Probably the only kid there excited."

Annabeth laughed. "Well, that was me so I can relate."

Percy gave her a funny look. "Really? You don't…" He shook his head.

Annabeth smiled. "Are you stereotyping?"

"No, but…" He trailed off, opening the door to his office. "Just didn't think you were a nerd, that's all." He said, his grin an indication of teasing.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Well, I wouldn't think you were the corporate type either."

Percy laughed. "Touche." He said, straightening some papers on his desk. "Oliver, take my calls for minute please.

"Yes, sir." The guy sitting outside Percy's office said, looking extremely nervous to just be talking to him.

Percy shook his head, shutting the door behind him. "Oliver's my new assistant. Junior at NYU. Good kid, he just needs to be more sure of himself. Okay, where were we?"

"Money?" Annabeth suggested, and Percy chuckled.

"Yeah, hold on, let me find my checkbook." He said. Annabeth nodded, taking a minute to appreciate the view. His office was huge, a grand cherry wood desk sitting in the middle, windows on three of the sides looking out over the Empire State Building. She wandered over to a window, staring out at Central Park.

"Beautiful, right?" Percy said softly, so close that his breath tickled her ear.

Annabeth jumped slightly, and Percy chuckled. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

She looked up at him, biting her lip than immediately regretting it because _what_ was she doing flirting with him? They were so close though, and his eyes were intense and gorgeous and if she just leaned up...

No. She pulled away, fast. "Money." She said, a little breathless.

"Right." He said, shaking his head and tearing his eyes away from hers. "I realized my checkbook is in my car, did you park in the garage?" He asked, suddenly walking very fast to the door.

"Yeah, I did." Annabeth said, following him out.

"Okay, we can just go grab it then." He said, walking back towards the front again. "Hi, Mary, I have to run to my car, I'll be right back. Can you validate her parking, please?"

Mary nodded, and Annabeth passed her the ticket. "Thanks." Annabeth said as she followed Percy out the door.

Annabeth knew the Jackson's were rich. It wasn't a secret, but she hadn't expected Percy to have a brand new Maybach that cost more than the building she lived in.

Unfortunately, he noticed Annabeth's jaw drop before she could pick it back up. "You can look inside, if you want." He offered, opening the passenger side and popping open the glove box. "It's my baby." He said as she opened the driver's side.

Annabeth laughed. "Well, it's gorgeous. When did you get it?"

"Finally convinced Rachel about six months ago." He said, pulling out his checkbook. "Got it." He said, pulling out a pen and writing out Annabeth's check.

Annabeth ran her hands over the steering wheel, and Percy chuckled, ripping the check out. "Want to go for a drive?" He asked, passing her the check.

Annabeth's eyes widened, and she blushed. "I-I don't think."

She looked over and found Percy blushing as well. "I'm sorry." He said. "I'm not sure… that was so inappropriate. I should get back to work."

"Yeah." She agreed, finding it hard to just get that simple word out.

"I'm, um." He stuttered, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. I'll see you tomorrow."

Annabeth didn't say anything, just watched him go, listening to the chirp of the car locking. She sighed, climbing into her own fancy car and starting the engine.

Park Avenue was at a slow crawl as she made her way back uptown, and Annabeth had decided that maybe the subway wasn't such a bad thing after all. Well, at least she would think that until the next time she had to stand body to body with a homeless guy and a tourist.

By the time she got back to their apartment building she was desperately in need of a walk to stretch her legs. She dropped the Audi off with the valet, and headed towards Central Park.

It was a gorgeous, crisp fall day and not humid for the first time in weeks. She started her normal route, walking past the boathouse and down to Bethesda Fountain. Her black tote bag swung back and forth as she walked, and the heels of her sandals clicked on the concrete.

Annabeth rifled through her bag, making sure she had brought her journal with her before she settled down on the steps in front of the fountain. This had always been one of her favorite places in the city. The architecture was gorgeous, and it was one of the few places in Central Park where you couldn't see any huge buildings towering over the trees.

She pulled out a pen and started writing, only halfway through her first sentence when she felt somebody practically step on her.

"Oh!" A guy's voice said above her. "I'm so sorry, I, uh, I was distracted."

"Clearly." Annabeth said with disdain, brushing off her journal. "It's fine." She said, looking up and seeing abs, deciding that maybe she could be a little nicer. The guy was about her age, twenty-five probably with bright blue eyes and brown hair. He was wearing running shorts and no shirt, and Annabeth forced her gaze up to his eyes.

He gave her a small sheepish smile. "Sorry." He said again. "I'm Ethan, by the way."

"Annabeth." She said, shaking his outstretched hand and smiling.

"Do you live around here?" He asked.

Annabeth laughed. "I'm not a tourist." She said.

Ethan chuckled. "Good." He said, passing her a business card. "Maybe I'll see you around again sometime." He said with a grin.

Annabeth blushed. "Maybe." She said, watching as he lifted his hand in a wave as he took off running again.


	5. Amus Bouche

Chapter 5

Percy

Percy had decided he was a horrible person.

What had he been thinking? Asking her to go for a drive with him in a car Rachel had only been in a handful of times? Almost kissing her because how could he not when she looked so beautiful and innocent, staring out at the skyline as if it was the first time she had ever seen it.

It had been a week without any more than casual pleasantries with Annabeth, but he couldn't get her out of his head. It reminded him of when he was sixteen, with those crushes in high school that you stumbled over words with, those girls that you were scared to ask them out on dates.

"What do you think?" Rachel asked, snapping him back to reality. "Is red too much with my hair? I could go with the green."

Percy shook his head, trying to clear out all thoughts of Annabeth. "I like the green." He said, coming up behind her and hugging her. "But you look absolutely breathtaking in both." He whispered, feeling like the worst husband in the world.

Rachel blushed. "I'll wear green." She said, stepping out of the red dress. "How is Zeus related to you again?" She asked, pulling her hair out of the way so Percy could zip up the back.

"He's my uncle." Percy said, as she passed him her necklace, a little irritated that they had been together since they were eighteen and she didn't know.

"We're taking the Maybach, right?" She said, giving him a quick kiss in thanks after he clasped the necklace.

"Yeah, I already told you we were." Percy said, going to a mirror in their closet to make sure his tie was straight.

"Okay, Jesus, Percy, I'm just checking." She said, rifling through her shoe closet until she pulled out simple black heels.

Percy was about to snap back when they heard Grace's footsteps. "Mommy!" Grace called as she wandered into their room. "Piper and Jason are here."

"Okay, sweetheart." She said, pulling on her second heel. Grace came in their closet, and Rachel picked her up. "Should we go say hi?"

Grace nodded. "Okay baby." Rachel said, looking back at Percy. "Coming, babe?"

"Yeah." Percy said, taking one last deep breath in front of the mirror.

"Hey, man." Jason said, giving Percy a one-armed hug. "The house looks great."

"Thanks." Percy said, giving Piper a hug. "You guys sure you don't want to come?"

Jason shook his head. "The less I see my dad, the better." He chuckled. "We haven't talked in years anyway."

"Okay." Percy said, tuning into Piper and Rachel's conversation.

"She just ate dinner, so she should be good to go. She wants to watch Moana, and then she usually has some milk before bedtime, which is at eight. Um, I don't know can you think of anything else, Perce?"

"You have Annabeth's number, right?" Percy checked, and Piper nodded.

"Yeah, we're all good." Piper said.

"Okay," Rachel said. "If you can't reach us, call her."

"Sounds good!" Piper said, taking Grace out of Rachel's arms. "We'll have fun, right Gracie?"

Grace grinned. "Yep!"

Rachel laughed. "Okay. The car's downstairs, I just got a text. We should go."

"Yeah, I'll get our coats." Percy said as Rachel kissed Grace on the head.

"Bye baby girl." She said, "I love you."

Percy walked over, ruffling her curls. "Love you lovebug." He said, passing Rachel her coat.

"Have a good time!" Rachel waved as they stepped into the elevator.

"Love you." Grace said, waving goodbye to them.

"Well," Rachel said when the doors shut, pulling out a compact mirror to check her lipstick. "Let's get this over with."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Could you not be in such a bad mood. This is my family."

Rachel just raised her eyebrows, stepping into the car as the chauffeur service they had hired opened the door for her.

Percy groaned, running his hand through his hair before sliding into the backseat next to her. Good thing they were driving with somebody, or they'd probably end up killing each other before they got there.

They spent the ride to his Uncle's penthouse in Tribeca in a stony, tense silence. Their driver - Blake - pulled up in front of the building, where cameras were flashing, and other party guests in too expensive dresses and suits that cost more than most people's income were entering hand in hand.

Percy exited the car, and opened Rachel's door, offering his hand, which she dismissed and got out on her own. He sighed, hesitantly putting an arm around her, and luckily she had enough sense not to shrug him off in front of the cameras.

His uncle was the wealthiest of his dad's siblings. He basically owned the sky, to put it simply. Poseidon, his dad, owned the oceans, and Hades, their oldest brother, was in real estate. Zeus's penthouse was on the one hundredth floor, in a building not much shorter than the Empire State. The whole thing was gold with white accents, from the gold pillars in the front room down to the gold rimmed champagne glass that Percy was offered as soon as he set foot in the place.

Rachel immediately disentangled herself from him, running off to find her friends, but Percy didn't have long to dwell on it before he heard Nico's voice behind him.

"Hey cuz." Nico said, clapping him on the back.

"Nico!" Percy said, grinning. "How are you, man?" His cousin, Nico, was about three years younger than him, and resembled his dad, Hades, in almost a creepy way. The olive toned skin, slicked black hair, wiry build. He always wore black, and even though him and Percy had absolutely nothing in common, they had always gotten along.

"Good, good. Excited to be celebrating our lovely uncle." Nico said, chuckling.

Percy laughed. "Well, at least we get the very best alcohol in the city at these things." He said, pointing to his glass filled with Dom.

"True." Nico said, clinking his champagne glass with Percy's. "Where's Rachel?"

Percy sighed. "Off with her friends, who knows." He said, taking a big gulp of champagne.

"I take it things aren't going well?" Nico asked.

"They're… fine. She's been really high strung this past month or so, and she's been super busy with work, and we've just been fighting. A lot."

"Sorry, dude." Nico said, sipping his drink. "Things will work out, you guys have been together forever."

"Yeah," Percy said, looking around the room. "Maybe that's part of-" He stopped short, jaw dropping. Annabeth Chase was exiting the elevator, head thrown back, laughing about something next to his cousin Thalia. Percy swallowed, hard.

She was breathtakingly beautiful. Her hair was swept up in an elegant bun, a few loose curls hanging around the edges. She was wearing a slinky red dress that reached just below her ankles, showing off white stilettos. Her neck was bare except a small silver chain, and two diamond studs that glinted when she turned towards the light.

"Dude." Nico, said, laughing. "Stop drooling before Rachels sees."

Percy wiped the side of his mouth, absentmindedly, before he realized Nico was just playing with him. Percy sent Nico a glare, then walked up to the two girls.

"Hi!" Annabeth said. "What are you…" She trailed off, staring at him in question.

"Uh…" Percy said intelligently before Nico jabbed him in the gut while talking to Thalia. "My um, uncle, is Zeus."

"Really?" Annabeth said, laughing, tilting her head slightly so Percy could see her exposed neck again, and gods she really needed to stop doing that. "That's so funny, Thalia and I have been best friends since I was seven."

"She's annoying." Thalia butted in, "But I deal with her."

Annabeth just rolled her eyes. "Anyways, where's Rachel?"

"Oh, just off with some other people." He said, waving in the general direction she had left in. Annabeth raised an eyebrow slightly, and Percy tried not to blush. She definitely knew the issues that had been going on in their house.

"Wait," Thalia said, holding up her hand. "How do you two know each other?"

"Annabeth didn't tell you?" Percy asked. "She's been our nanny for the past month."

Thalia's eyes widened, and Annabeth blushed. "Oh!" She said. "This is the family you've been nannying for?" Thalia said, starting to laugh, even though Percy didn't know what was so funny.

"Let's get a drink." Annabeth said, instead of answering. "We'll see you guys later, okay?" Annabeth dragged Thalia away, who was still laughing like this was the funniest thing.

"Dude." Nico said, once they were out of earshot. "No wonder Rachel and you are having problems with her in the house."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Don't be ridiculous. Come on, let's go find our seat." Percy said, walking towards the huge dining room where a dozen or so round tables were set up, all with name tags at the seats. Dinner wasn't starting for another ten minutes, but most people were already sitting down. The family's tables were usually right in the front, and Percy found himself sat between Rachel and Annabeth. Nico was on Rachel's left, Thalia on Annabeth's right and Nico's sister Bianca and her long term boyfriend across from him. His dad and everybody was at the table to their right.

Bianca and Joe were already seated, and Percy said hi before pulling out his phone to text Rachel.

Where are you?

Two

Two minutes, two hours, two days?

Percy didn't get a response, and instead downed the rest of his champagne, calling over a waiter for more.

Annabeth and Thalia came up behind him, and Percy almost pulled out her chair for her before he remembered that was the kind of thing you did if you were dating.

"Find that drink?" Percy asked.

Annabeth smiled, holding up her glass. "They make a good Cosmo."

Percy laughed and was in a good mood for a second before Rachel sat down next to him.

"Oh!" She said, noticing Annabeth. "Hi, how are you?" She asked, and the two girls leaned across Percy, talking over him.

"Good, how are you?" Annabeth asked, smiling politely, and in some part of Percy's brain he allowed it to register that he got Annabeth's real smile, the one that lit up her eyes, made her throw her head back, and made Percy's stomach churn.

"How do you know Zeus?" Rachel asked, spreading her napkin on her lap.

"Thalia's been my best friend for years. She asked me to come along with her tonight." Annabeth explained, sipping her drink.

"That's so crazy, I can't believe we didn't know." Rachel said. Annabeth opened her mouth to respond, but they were interrupted by the clinking of glass. They turned their attention towards Zeus, who was standing in the front of the room.

"Welcome!" He said, voice booming. "Thank you all for coming. I'll keep this short, so we can get to eating our wonderful five course meal prepared by Demeter's Catering. Open bar to your right, two rooms for dancing to the left, and the terrace is always open for a breath of fresh air. Upstairs is off limits. Thank you, let's eat!" People cheered, and waiters came around, serving the amus bouche.

The waiter placed a small piece of bruschetta toast with prosciutto, arugula and goat cheese on it in front of Percy. He took a bite, turning to Annabeth.

"Have you ever been to one of these before?" Percy asked.

Annabeth blushed, holding up a finger as she finished chewing.

"Sorry." Percy said, chuckling.

She swallowed, laughing. "Not since I was in high school. I've never done the dinner thing before, though, Thalia and I always used to go hang out in the back with a bottle of wine and some weed."

Percy chuckled. "Of course, explains why we've never seen each other here before." Percy said. "Well, this is the amus bouche." He said, in his best French accent.

Annabeth burst out laughing. "I'm sorry." She said, giggling. "You've never taken French before have you."

Percy grinned. "That obvious?"

Annabeth nodded, laughing. "Amus bouche." She repeated, in perfect French.

Percy raised his eyebrows. "I take it you have learned it."

She nodded, taking her second and final bite of bruschetta. "French, Greek, Spanish and Latin." Annabeth said once she had swallowed.

"I didn't know our nanny was a nerd." Percy said, laughing.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, blushing slightly "So, are you going to explain to me what exactly an amus bouche is?"

"Oh, definitely." Percy said, clearing his throat and straightening up. "The amus bouche," He said, watching as she stifled a laugh over his imperfect French and his uppity attitude. "Is something to get your palate excited about before the meal. It does not," He continued in a French accent, and pretty soon both him and Annabeth were trying not to choke over laughing.

Rachel elbowed him. "Honey, we're at a dinner, not a comedy show." She said quietly, and Annabeth silenced immediately.

Percy, on the other hand, was not scared of Rachel. "Lighten up." He snapped.

Rachel sent him a deathening glare. "If you'll excuse me." She said, getting up and stalking past surprised waiters and rich people stares.

"I - I'm sorry." Annabeth stuttered. "I didn't mean-"

"It's not you." Percy cut her off, and they spent the rest of dinner talking to different people.

Two hours later, an angry wife, a babysitter he shouldn't have these thoughts about and one long ass dinner, Percy was finally released. The fifth course, a flaming lava cake that Zeus always had at his birthdays, was over and Percy had never been more thankful.

They were dismissed and Percy grabbed Nico's arm, pulling him away from the awkwardness that was his table.

"So…" Nico started. "There's nothing between you and your supposed nanny?"

Percy glared at him. "No."

"You guys talk like you're friends." Nico commented. "Where are we going, anyway?"

"Dancing." Percy responded, ignoring the first part of his sentence.

Nico groaned. "Dude, I hate dancing."

Percy shrugged. "You're not drunk enough then."

"You are." Nico said, allowing Percy to pull him into one of the dancing rooms. There were two sides of these types of parties. The young, grinding, making out, R&B kind of music side, and then there was the slow dance, classical, fancy cocktail side. Percy always went to the first option.

Nico was right, Percy had downed way too much alcohol for this kind of party, but he had a good excuse. "Are you going to dance, or not?" Percy asked. "Because if you're not, then don't kill my vibe." He had to yell over the loud music, and the amount of people who had made it out of dinner faster than him surprised him.

Nico rolled his eyes, but wandered towards the middle, grabbing the hips of some brunette they couldn't see the face of, but she seemed into it. Percy grabbed a drink from a close tray, and wrapped an arm around the waist of a small blonde in a black dress. She was good, but if he wasn't so drunk she wouldn't be doing it for him. A small part of him registered that he wanted the real blonde he had fantasies about, but he tried to ignore it, getting lost in the music.

 **This story has had crazy success in the past month so thank you all so much! Sorry i haven't been doing author notes, I started college about the time I started posting this story so it's been hectic. I plan to update every Friday, except last night I was busy so it's here this morning. Anyways, please enjoy and review!**


	6. Brown-Haired Runner

Chapter 6

Annabeth

Did he know he was flirting with her? Because she sure as hell realized it, and so did Rachel and she wouldn't be surprised if she was fired tomorrow morning.

She wouldn't blame Rachel. This was so wrong, and Annabeth felt horrible. She didn't know why she couldn't stay away. He was this drug, like a fix and if she didn't get enough she just needed more. Gods, and she had only known him a month.

He had left fast after dinner was over, and she didn't blame him. His wife had been glaring daggers into his side the whole time. Not that he didn't deserve it, because he totally did.

Thalia was currently dragging her to the dance floor, telling her this was the best part of the party. Annabeth didn't argue, she had always loved the vibe at clubs or any sort of dancing. The sweat, letting go, getting drunk.

The more she had thought about it, the more she realized her pattern in life was unhealthy. Work so hard her brain almost melted, go out and get so drunk and hungover that she promised never to do it again, then do it all over again the next week.

She gave herself until thirty to turn her life around. That didn't seem so unreasonable.

Thalia pulled her out onto the dance floor, pushing her towards the middle. Annabeth didn't remember all these people being here, but there were a couple hundred young twenty something's out here. The playlist was good, a combo of R&B, Hip-Hop and some Club remixes.

Annabeth felt somebody touch her hips and she responded, moving backwards until their bodies were one. She lost Thalia in the crowd, but didn't think about it in the moment. She closed her eyes, threw her head back and moved her hips, the guys hand pressed firmly into her sides.

They were pushed around, and eventually Annabeth found herself with another person. He was better than her first, and Annabeth let out a little moan, which normally would've embarrassed her if she wasn't wasted drunk. A slow R&B song came on, one she recognized as the singer 6LACK, but she didn't know the name of the song. It was good, and was kind of putting her in the mood, so she raised an arm up, his hand following hers as she wrapped it around his neck. He took the hint, leaning down and sucking on her neck. Annabeth sighed, louder this time, and she felt his pants tighten. She grinned to herself, turning around and -

"Percy?" She asked - well, more like yelled with all the noise.

His eyes widened. "Shit." He whispered, but he didn't make a move to take his hands off her hips.

Annabeth didn't move, just stared up at him, eyes locked. "We shouldn't."

"I know." He whispered again, face leaning closer. Annabeth swallowed.

"Percy." She tried again, but she couldn't tear herself away.

"I know." He said, taking a deep breath and leaning back up. Annabeth whimpered at the sudden removal of heat from her stomach.

"I should go." She said, setting her drink down on a tray. "I'll, um, see you on Monday." She said, trying not to run out of the room. She picked up her coat from coat check, and hurried out into the beautiful New York summer evening. Cars were still honking and swerving, and she almost hit ten pedestrians as she twisted her ankle in her stiletto. "Shit." She cussed to no one in particular. "Fuck, I'm so stupid."

"Miss?" A man who was walking by stopped to ask her. "Are you all right?"

Annabeth's eyesight was going blurry, but she didn't know if it was from tears or all the alcohol. Probably both. "I'm good, thanks." She said, sticking her hand out to signal a cab as the man shook his head, walking away.

Ten seconds later, Annabeth was stumbling her way into a cab. Luckily it was late, a little past one in the morning, and the drive back to her studio in Soho was only ten minutes.

-0-

It was almost noon on Saturday when Annabeth woke up with a splitting headache.

"Fuck." She groaned, immediately reaching for the glass of water she kept by her bedside, but realizing she hadn't been in the right headstate last night to pour one.

Memories of last night flooded back, making her head hurt even more. She lazily pressed the home button on her iPhone, flopping over in her bed.

"Call Piper." She said.

"Calling Piper dancing girls." Siri said. Annabeth laughed at her interpretation of the emoji next to her best friend's name, then immediately regretted it because the movement made her head throb.

"A." Piper answered simply.

"Hangover food at Root&Bone." Annabeth said, groaning as she rolled out of bed. "Thirty minutes."

Piper laughed. "Be there." She said, hanging up.

Thirty minutes later, they were seated with a number and Annabeth was bouncing her foot impatiently as she waited for their fried chicken and waffles.

"So," Piper started, taking a sip of water. "Is this just a hangover meeting, or is there another issue?"

Annabeth sighed, putting her head in her hands. "I _grinded_ on him last night." Annabeth seethed. A horn honked outside, and Annabeth groaned. "Too loud." She complained.

"On Percy Jackson?" Piper said, her mouth wide. "Oh my gods!"

"Yeah." Annabeth said, shaking her head. "I'm so stupid. Gods, this is horrible. How am I supposed to look at him tomorrow?"

Piper shrugged. "Maybe he won't remember? He was drunk last night."

"Oh right, how was Grace, by the way?" Annabeth asked, remembering that they had stepped in and babysat since Annabeth couldn't be there.

"A sweetheart." Piper said. "But back to you. How was it?"  
Annabeth scrunched her eyebrows up. "What?"

"Was he good?"

"Piper!" Annabeth said, slapping her on the arm. Her food came, and Annabeth took a huge bite, moaning. "Fuck, this tastes good."

Piper rolled her eyes, "Come on, I need details."

Annabeth glared at her. "It was amazing. Like seriously, one of the best."

"Yep, you're screwed." Piper said, laughing. Annabeth picked off a piece of waffle and threw it at her. "How'd you find out it was him?"

Annabeth blushed, taking a drink of her black coffee. "I wanted to have sex with him. I mean, before I saw his face. I did the arm thing, he gave me this," Annabeth paused, pulling down the only summer shirt she had that covered her neck to expose a dark hickey, "and then he, you know, I could feel it, and so I turned around and was about to suggest we get out of there, and he was there."

Piper shook her head, touching Annabeth's hickey like it might not have been real. "Fuck."

"Yeah, you think?" Annabeth said. "I mean, I feel so horrible. This is so wrong."

Piper nodded. "Yeah, I mean, I'm not the biggest fan of Rachel, but…"

"I know." Annabeth moaned, burying her head in her hands again. "They've been having so many issues too, it makes me feel like some sort of rebound, and I definitely don't want that and-"

"I knew it!" Piper said. "I told Jason last night that they were fighting, but he was like no, they've been in love for years, but I could tell something was different. I mean, if that's the case, I say go for it. Who's fault do you think the fighting is?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Fighting comes from both sides, Piper. But…" Annabeth sighed. "Rachel's been really absent in the home lately. I know that's where a lot of their issues come from."

Piper nodded. "What are you gonna do?"

"Avoid him."

Piper laughed. "Good luck with that."

Twenty minutes later they had paid and said goodbye, Piper heading off to see a movie with Jason. Annabeth envied them, more than she wanted too. She had told herself over and over again she didn't want it. She didn't want the pressure, the maintenance, and she sure as hell didn't want the same thing that happened in high school to happen now. To say she had trust issues would be an understatement.

Annabeth swung her bag as she walked home instead of taking the train. It was bright outside, the buildings in Soho glittering in the early fall sun. It was a classic New York day. Sunny in the morning, humid in the afternoon, and you could feel the storm that was going to roll in this evening in the air. She breathed deep, avoiding the crowds of people on Prince St.

She turned left and the sun was suddenly in her face. She stuck her hand in her bag, trying to pull out her sunglasses while also making sure she didn't run into angry hungover New Yorkers. Her fingers grazed the sharp business card that guy in Central Park had given her, and Annabeth stopped, slowly pulling it out. She hadn't thought about him since that day, everything had been too hectic, but now that she was… maybe he was just what she needed to get her mind off everything. She twirled the card in her fingers, staring down at the black ink with Mirador Real Estate; Ethan Sheffield scrawled on it.

-0-

To Annabeth's pleasure - or dismay, depending on which Annabeth she was listening too - avoiding him was easy. He was never there. Left before Annabeth got there every morning, and Rachel was home earlier than five Monday through Thursday. It wasn't until Friday that the awkwardness happened.

"Hi, lovebug!" Percy said to Grace, scooping her up in his arms. Annabeth froze in the kitchen, trying to make it seem like she wasn't there, which she knew was stupid. "Where's Annabeth?" He asked.

"In there." She heard Grace say. Percy wandered in, making faces at Grace to avoid eye contact.

"I have to run, I have class." Annabeth said quickly, setting down the towel and waving goodbye to Grace.

"Annabeth, wait." Percy said, but she was already slipping on her shoes.

"Bye Gracie!" She said, and hurried into the elevator without a second glance at him.

The second time they saw each other, Monday, was similar. She was upstairs playing with Grace's life like doll house that Annabeth could have only dreamed of having when she was a child when he came home. He kissed Grace's curls, then asked Annabeth if they could talk. Annabeth politely declined and left with another goodbye to Grace.

The third time was when things went sideways.

"Why don't you ever say hi to daddy anymore?" Grace asked that afternoon as she sat in her chair eating her dinosaur chicken nugget snack.

"What?" Annabeth asked, looking up from her computer where she was getting some work done while the little girl was busy.

"You and daddy," She said with her mouth full, and if Annabeth wasn't so shocked she would've chided her for it. "You don't talk anymore."

"I've just been busy." Annabeth made up on the spot. "Everything's okay. Eat your apples, please." She reminded, and Grace was silent, busy counting how many more apples she had left to eat.

After snack, they went up to the movie room to watch a show, and Annabeth made the stupid mistake of falling asleep. It had been a long week, with school and all this stress, and she didn't even notice when Grace untangled herself and went down to greet her dad.

"I missed you." He said to Grace, and she curled into him tighter.

"Missed you too Daddy." She said. "Annabeth is asleep." She said, pointing upstairs.

Percy found her on Grace's couch, curled up with her mouth parted slightly, puffing out little breaths of air.

"Should we wake her up?" Grace asked, bouncing on the heels of her feet.

"I will." Percy promised. "Why don't you go play in your room for right now?" Grace didn't argue and skipped out of the room, leaving the two of them alone together for the first time since the incident.

"Annabeth." He whispered, kneeling down next to the couch, and brushing away a stray piece of hair. Her eyes fluttered open, and they were face to face. His eyes were bright and swirling, and Annabeth found herself lost in them. She hadn't realized how truly beautiful they were until this moment.

"Hi." She whispered, her stomach stirring nervously. "How long have I been asleep?" She asked. Percy was close, but she stayed calm. She didn't want to ruin the one moment they might have left together before she got fired.

"I just got home." He said, reaching out a hand to stroke her cheek, but he retracted it before he got too close.

"Where's Grace?" She asked softly.

"In her room." He responded, just as quietly. "You look cute when you're sleeping." His eyes widened, as if he hadn't meant to say that out loud, and Annabeth sat bolt upright, the moment ruined. The butterflies in her stomach turned to rocks and she suddenly felt like vomiting. The show of emotion, how wrong this was in the first place… she felt like running and never turning back.

"Fuck, I need to go. This so wrong." She said, stubbing her toe in her panic. "Fuck." She said again.

"Annabeth, please wait." Percy pleaded, but she was already on her way down the stairs. "Annabeth." He said again, catching her hand as she was walking towards the elevator, her heart feeling like it was being ripped in two.

"What, Percy?" She turned to face him, her eyes rimmed red. "Just stop, okay? Either fire me or stay away. I can't do this anymore. It's not fair to me or Rachel."

"I know." He said quietly. "I know, just please-"

"Please what?" She fired back, a tear escaping. "Just leave me alone." She snapped, and waited until the doors shut before she let the tears go.

Ten minutes later, halfway done with her subway ride on the 6, Annabeth pulled out the business card again, the Ethan Sheffield somehow less daunting now. In the back of her mind, she knew she would always choose the guy like Percy. The one she couldn't get close too, the one that would validate her intimacy issues. But, she could pretend. She could try, at least. Annabeth could barely move there were so many people on the train, and she had to maneuver her way around them to get two hands free. Before she thought too much about it she fired off a simple text to the brown haired runner.

 **a/n; This chapter is kind of short, but I feel like it's also a turning point, so... promise there's going to be more percabeth soon! Anyways, sorry for not updating on Friday, but I had midterms this week and college is crazy busy and hard. I do have like six more chapters of this already written though, so the updates won't stop even if life is crazy.**

 **Review!**

 **-a**


	7. Sports Bra

Chapter 7

Percy

"I think we should go see a therapist." Percy whispered one night. It was late, a little past midnight, and he wasn't even sure if she was awake.

"Okay." Rachel whispered back, rolling to face away from him, her legs almost hanging off their king size bed.

-0-

It was the middle of a Thursday. They had stopped to grab sushi before their first appointment, and Percy could tell Rachel was stressed. She was chewing her nails, and all they did was talk about the weather during lunch. He didn't know how to comfort her anymore, though, so he stayed silent.

The lady - Theresa - whose office was in Williamsburg, was in her late forties. Her hair was straight and brown, and she looked exactly like Percy imagined a therapist would look like. Pinched nose, glasses and a professional looking suit that had a couple strands out of place. "Welcome!" She said, in a bubbly high pitch voice. "Come in, take a seat on that couch over there."

Percy and Rachel sat down, about ten years apart. The room was overly colorful, with green chairs and red couches and orange paintings. Percy instantly felt out of place.

"Okay," She said, taking a seat across from them in a chair. "Do you mind if I record?"

Rachel shook her head. "No, of course not."

"Great," She said, smiling. "Let's start with the basics. How long have you two been fighting?"

"Um, about a month now." Rachel said, fingering the hem of her blazer.

"A little longer." Percy added, and Theresa raised her eyebrows as if that was interesting.

"I see." She said, making a note in her notebook. "And what do you two think is the cause - one at a time, please."

Percy resisted the urge to roll his eyes, feeling like he was in back in middle school. Rachel responded first. "He's been really distant, lately. And we've been arguing about how to raise Grace, our daughter."

"How so?" Theresa asked.

Percy spoke up. "It got worse when about a month ago Grace told our nanny that she didn't think Rachel loved her."

"You have a nanny?" Theresa asked. "How much is this nanny around?"

Rachel thought for a second. "Um, 7 to 5 on the weekdays, some times weekends depending on different work events we have going on."

"So she's full time." She stated.

"Yeah, well we work full time so…" Percy said, trailing off as she wrote more in her notebook. "That's part of my issue, is how much Rachel has been gone lately. We used to eat dinner together every night, religiously. We had a rule about working on weekends, and lately she's just been off busy with the gallery so much."

"Percy," Theresa said gently. "We don't have issues here, we like to say, something I'd like to work on. Try to phrase it in a gentler way." Percy was trying hard not to laugh. "What do you two do for work?"

"I own a high end gallery in Chelsea. We've been selling a lot lately, so I've been busy buying other pieces and going to showings." Rachel said, picking at her fingernails.

"I'm CEO of Jackson Global's US Region." Percy said.

Theresa nodded. "So, in other words, you too are very busy with work. How's your sex life?"

Rachel blushed. "It's been a month. Almost. The last time was when we took a vacation to the Hamptons."

"And when was the last time you went on a date?" She asked, writing more down in her notepad.

Percy scoffed. "A long time ago." He said.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I don't recall you ever asking." She said.

"Rach, I barely see you before I go to bed. How am I supposed to ask for a date." Percy snapped back.

"Please," Theresa said, holding her hand up. "There's no fighting here, only talking. We're almost out of time for the day, but I do have some things I'd like you to try before our next appointment next week. You have somebody who can watch your daughter this weekend?"

Rachel nodded. "Annabeth should be available."

"Not Friday, though, she has class." Percy spoke up. Theresa looked at him, but didn't say anything, just wrote more things in her notebook.

"Okay," She said, once she was done. "I'd like you guys to go on a date. Saturday evening. Pick a restaurant that means something to both of you. It doesn't need to be fancy. I'd also like to see you both individually if that's possible before Thursday."

"Of course." Rachel said, "We'll call once I'm in front of a calendar."

"Great." Theresa said, showing them the door. "I'll see you two soon."

-0-

Saturday evening rolled around, and Annabeth showed up at seven o'clock prompt. Percy had respected her, and steered clear of her mostly, other than the occasional thanks and hello in the mornings and evenings.

"Bedtime at eight, as always." Rachel said, giving Grace a hug. "Thank you so much for coming on such late notice."

"Of course!" Annabeth said. She wouldn't meet Percy's eyes. "Be out as late as you want."

"Do you want to take the subway?" Percy asked, once they were behind the closed doors of the elevator.

Rachel searched his eyes to see if he was kidding or not. "You're serious." She said, laughing slightly. "Sure, let's take the subway."

Percy grinned, taking her hand. She looked surprised, but she didn't pull away. Percy was taking her to Mimi's, the little cute Italian place in Chelsea that he had taken her for their second date, back when they were eighteen.

Rachel leaned into him as they got on the 4, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He was debating telling her about what had happened with Annabeth, but he didn't want Annabeth to lose her job. He knew how important this was to her, and besides, Gracie loved her.

"So," Rachel said as the waiter brought over bread and water. "Something big came up. You know that piece by Picasso, the one I've always loved."

Percy smiled. "Yeah, of course." The waiter came over, and they ordered a bottle of red wine before she continued.

"It's up for auction, over in Nice, France." She said. "I was thinking maybe we could go."

"Just the two of us?" He asked.

"No, Grace has never been there and it would be unfair of us not to take her." Rachel said, shaking her head. "I know my work has been a big point of tension between us, but I can't pass this opportunity up." She said, finding his eyes.

"No, of course not." Percy shook his head. "When's the auction?" He asked.

She smiled sheepishly. "Next weekend, Sunday morning. There's a dinner on Saturday night for the gallery buyers that both of us would have to go to. There's also another auction on Friday, and there's a piece I'm interested in there too. You wouldn't have to go to that one, though, it's not as big.

Percy grinned. "Okay, let's do it."

Rachel laughed disbelievingly. "Really?"

"Yeah," Percy said, shrugging as he took a sip of wine. "Besides, I love France."

"Okay," She said, a little breathless. "I'll tell Adam to book our tickets."

-0-

What Percy had not realized, however, when he said yes to France was that Annabeth would be coming.

He and Rachel's date went well. Really well, actually, and when they got back they had their hands all over each other. That was in the elevator, before they entered their house and saw Annabeth in the kitchen, sports bra and tight blue leggings on, with her hair in a ponytail and headphones in, getting water.

"Oh!" She said, jumping when she turned around. "Sorry, I didn't see you guys."

"No worries, I take it you used the exercise room." Rachel said, laughing."

"Yeah, sorry, I didn't realize how late it was getting." Annabeth said, smiling.

"Percy, can you get the check?" Rachel asked, but Percy's head was anywhere but money right now. "Babe, are you listening?" Rachel elbowed him, and Percy snapped out of it.

"Uh, yeah, sorry, be right back." He said, removing himself from the room before he could do anything else stupid.

Rachel started asking Annabeth about France, and Percy wished she could just leave it alone for right now. The last thing he needed was a flushed Annabeth without a shirt on in his house any longer than needed. "So, we actually have a last minute trip to the French Riviera, happening. I have an art thing there. It's next Thursday through Tuesday, so if you can't miss the school, it's no big deal if you can't go, they have babysitting through the hotel we're staying at. There will be a lot of down time, though, if you need to get some work done."

"Um…" Annabeth hesitated. "Yeah, I can go. I can't pass up a trip to France."

Rachel laughed. "Great, I'll send you an email with details later, but you'll be flying business class with Grace. We're staying at Chateau Saint-Martin, so we'll get you your own room and everything. There's a spa, pool, everything you could ever want. I'll email you though, when it's not so late." She said, their voices getting closer.

"Great, sounds good." Annabeth said.

"Okay, well, I am going to head to bed." Rachel announced. "Percy, where is that check? What is up with your head tonight?"

Percy ran his hand through his hair. "Right, check." He murmured.

"I'll meet you upstairs." Rachel said. "Thanks, Annabeth, for everything."

"Of course." Annabeth said, putting on the sweatshirt she came in with. "Good night."

Rachel disappeared up the stairs, and Percy handed Annabeth the hundred dollar check. "Thanks, for tonight." He forced out.

"Anytime." Annabeth said with a ghost of a smile, but she didn't make a move to leave.

"So, you're coming to France?" He said, smiling.

Annabeth blushed. "It was hard to say no."

"Well, if it makes any difference, I'm glad you're coming." Percy said, and he had decided the wine had officially gone to his head.

Annabeth avoided his eyes. "Percy, you need to go upstairs and be with your wife."

Percy didn't respond, just pushed the elevator button for her. "Goodnight, Annabeth." He said as she stepped in.

"Night." She whispered, giving him a smile.

Percy begrudgingly made his way up the stairs, where Rachel was waiting for him in their closet. She was seated at her vanity, in that black lace robe that drove him - no, used to drive him crazy, because it wasn't doing it today - and applying rose oil to her neck, like she did every night.

"Goodnight." Percy said once he had changed and brushed his teeth. He felt horrible, but he would feel even worse if he had sex with her right after having those thoughts about someone else.

He could feel Rachel's eyes on the back of his neck. She didn't say goodnight back, and when she crawled into bed, she was as far away from him as possible.

-0-

"How have things been?" Theresa asked at his individual Thursday session.

Percy sighed, putting his head in his hands. "Fine, I guess."

"How was your date?" She tried again, prying.

"Good. Really good, until we got home." Percy said.

"What happened when you got home?" Theresa asked.

"Look, this is like a safe space, or whatever, right? I mean, you can't repeat things." Percy said, warily.

Theresa nodded. "Is there something you'd like to get off your chest?"

Percy sighed, taking a deep breath. "Is it normal to be having thoughts about somebody else when your marriage isn't doing well?"

Theresa, scribbled in her notebook before talking. "It's normal to be having thoughts when your marriage is going perfectly fine." She said. "But, that doesn't mean it's okay to act on those intentions."

"I haven't." Percy said, shaking his head wildly.

"Are you around this person a lot?" Theresa asked. "Sometimes removing yourself from the situation can help."

"I can't do that. It's impossible." Percy said.

Theresa stared at him. "Sometimes, the best thing to do is be honest. With yourself, with Rachel, and with your nanny."

"You can't just assume-" Percy sputtered, standing up in anger.

Theresa just looked at him calmly. "Am I wrong?"

Percy glared at her. "I'll see you next week." He said, slamming the door behind him.

The train ride back was gross and long, and he was pretty sure somebody had peed in the L train he was on. Great.

Forty minutes later, he was waving to the doorman as he entered their apartment - or penthouse. For the first time since he and Rachel put their down payment on it, he felt disgusted to be here. Their lavish art. Their white couch that was purely for decoration. Their spiraling staircase and view of Central Park. He wanted to tear it up and split the money between people who actually needed it.

The kitchen clock said it was almost 3:30, which meant Annabeth and Grace would be back soon. He didn't want to deal with them, but the elevator dinged before he could think more about it.

"Daddy!" Grace squealed when she saw him.

"Hey, sweetie." He said, giving her a hug. Annabeth stood awkwardly by the elevator, twisting the straps of her tote bag.

"Are you good, or…?" Annabeth trailed off.

She looked good. She wore a plaid top with a camel coat, black jeans and high heeled boots. Her hair was shining, and she was wearing a little makeup. She looked like… "Are you going on a date?" He blurted out inappropriately.

Her eyes narrowed. "No, Percy, I have grad school. We have a dress code. If you'll excuse me, I have errands to run if I'm not needed here." She said coldly, hitting the down button.

Percy blushed. "I'm sorry. We're good, we'll still pay you for the hours though."

Annabeth gave a short nod, stepping into the elevator. "Wait." Percy called out, but the doors were already closed.

He sighed, turning his attention back to his daughter, her green eyes looking up at him with worry. She was the only good thing to come out of his relationship with Rachel.

"You want to go get ice cream or something, Grace?" He asked.

She laughed with delight, the previous altercation removed from her mind. "Yes!" She said, pulling her little fall boots that she had bought with Annabeth back on. They walked down Lexington Ave to their favorite place. Grace held onto his hand tight, chattering away about her day at school.

"Daddy?" She asked after they had sat down with their ice cream. She had been quiet, stuffing her face full of chocolate peanut butter.

"Yeah, lovebug?" He said, taking a lick of his ice cream. Her face was a mess, and Percy almost grabbed a napkin to clean her up, but he stopped. She was a kid, and as much as sometimes Rachel forced her to act perfectly behaved, she needed days like this. Days where she could get her face messy with ice cream and talk freely without being shushed by a bunch of other rich adults.

"Are you and mommy fighting?" She asked, taking another bite.

Percy was taken aback by the question. He had thought they had been fairly quiet about their issues, but Grace wasn't stupid. The house was tense, and even a five year old could sense that. "Yes." He said, going with the honest answer. "But, that doesn't mean we're going to split up, okay? We both love you, a lot."

"I know." She said. "But if you aren't happy why would you stay together?"

Percy stared at her. Leave it to a five year old to simplify all of his issues with his wife into one sentence. "Well, things are complicated." He said.

"Are things complicated with Annabeth?" She asked innocently, her eyes wide.

"Well…" Percy trailed off again. He didn't know what to say, so he changed the subject. "Hey, look at the time! Mommy's going to be home soon, should we go."

Grace gave him a weird look, but she focused on Rachel luckily. "Yep! Can we go to Up tonight?" She asked, throwing her dish in the garbage.

Up was the shortened version of the thai place Up Thai that was close to their house. It was a favorite of theirs, but they hadn't been in a while. Percy realized that, probably subconsciously, he and Rachel had stopped going to places they used to go when they first got married. "Maybe." He responded, taking her hand again and leading her down the street.

 **a/n**

 **So, I've decided to start updating twice a week, since I have another fifteen chapters written already or so, so I just want to get them out there. It should be every Tuesday and Friday, so hopefully I can stick to that schedule. Also, college is getting so hard and I did seven hours of homework yesterday, but the harder it gets the more I procrastinate so good news for you guys.**

 **Also, I don't really like this chapter. I think I do Annabeth better than Percy, but that's probably because I'm a girl so it's easier to get in a girl's mind. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy.**

 **Review!**

 **-a**


	8. Dreamin'

Chapter 8

Annabeth

Business class on the plane would have been a lot more enjoyable if she wasn't seated next to a five year old girl who was way too hyper for the situation.

"Grace Lilianne Jackson." Annabeth said, in a firm tone. "Sit down, or you're losing your screen time for the rest of the flight."

"But-" She whined, bouncing up and down in her seat.

"No buts." Annabeth said. "The guy next to me doesn't want to hear you're complaining."

"Hmpf." She said, crossing her arms, but she stayed quiet. Truthfully, Annabeth probably wouldn't have the patience to take away screen time - that just meant Annabeth had to entertain her instead of watching the new episode of Game of Thrones.

"Grace, I really think you should get some sleep." Annabeth tried again. "You don't want to be grumpy when we get there."

Grace didn't respond. "Why don't you try for ten minutes. If you aren't asleep, you can go back to watching your movie." Annabeth said.

Grace groaned. "Fine." She said, and moved so she was curled up with her head on Annabeth's lap. Annabeth smiled slightly, stroking her curls, and plugged her headphones in, trying to fall asleep herself.

-0-

A limo service sent by the hotel was waiting for them at the airport. Annabeth had to sit in the front, but she didn't mind. The views were better from up here anyway.

She made small talk with the driver as they drove through the french countryside. It was breathtaking, and Annabeth found herself feeling extremely lucky for the opportunities she had through this job.

The hotel, though, was on a whole other level. It was a beautiful castle, probably 14th century if she had to guess. Ivy grew around the building, and she could spot people all over the property - some climbing aboard yachts, some swimming in the infinity pool, some dressed up for a day out.

As Rachel took Grace's hand and pulled her along as the bellman took them to their rooms, Percy pulled at Annabeth's hand.

She looked up at him, but didn't say anything, just let Rachel and Grace step ahead.

"Look," He started, quietly. "I'm sorry about… everything. But I don't want it to affect our relationship, or especially Grace's. I just… can we just be friends?" He asked, looking at her so hopefully that Annabeth couldn't help but smile.

"Yes," She said. "I'd like that."

"Great." He said, looking relieved.

"Annabeth!" Grace called, pointing at something. "This is your room!"

"It is!" Annabeth said, rushing forward and picking her up. "I love it, did you pick it out?"

Grace giggled. "Of course not."

Annabeth laughed, tickling her sides. "Okay, go with your mom, you have to unpack." She said, placing a kiss on her head.

Grace jumped down and ran in, following after her parents. Annabeth sighed and shut the door, flopping down on the satin sheets for some much needed rest.

-0-

Annabeth woke up a few hours later, the sun setting outside her window. The place was gorgeous, and Annabeth noticed things she hadn't when she first got here. The bathroom was huge, with one of those bathtubs that was in the middle of the room, not the bathroom. The bed was twice the size of hers at home, and a hell of a lot comfier. There was a living space to the right of the bed, with a balcony off of that.

She changed into sweats and a sports bra, and was about to settle in on the couch and watch some Netflix when she noticed Grace's carry-on backpack sitting next to her suitcase. She must have just taken it with her when they got here, and nobody noticed.

Annabeth sighed, groaning as she heaved herself up from the couch to take it over there.

She knocked quietly, just in case Grace was sleeping. The door opened, and Percy stood there, no shirt and low hanging gray sweats.

"Uh," Annabeth said intelligently, tearing her eyes away from his washboard abs, and becoming uncomfortably aware of the fact the she had come in with no shirt on.

Percy closed the door, stepping out into the hallway with her. "Is this Grace's?" He asked.

Annabeth nodded, and swallowed hard. "Yeah, I realized I had it."

"Okay, thanks." He said, taking the pink backpack out of Annabeth's hand. "How's the room?"

"Beautiful." Annabeth said, smiling softly. "This place is gorgeous."

"Yeah," Percy nodded. "Kind of feels like a dream."

They were staring at each other, and Annabeth cleared her throat, changing the topic. "Is Rachel here?"

Percy shook his head. "No, she's at an auction thing right now. Why, did you need her?"

"No." Annabeth said quickly. "Just wondering. Is Grace asleep?"

"Yeah." Percy said. "She was exhausted after the flight."

"I bet." Annabeth said chuckling. "She would not settle down."

Percy laughed. "I know, sorry you had to sit back there with her. Rachel's coordinator booked us first class, and it was so late minute we couldn't change it. We usually don't fly first."

Annabeth waved it off. "No big deal, we had a good time. I doubt the guy next to us did, though." She said, laughing along with Percy.

When they stopped giggling, Percy locked eyes with her. "Do you want to go get a drink?"

Annabeth's face turned beet red. "Uh, I don't think that's-"

"Just say yes." Percy said. "Rachel won't be back until at least two in the morning, and Grace is totally safe here and sleeping soundly."

"What happened to being friends?" She asked, not meeting his eyes.

Percy shrugged. "Friends can get drinks together, right?" He questioned back. Annabeth was silent for a second. _We're not friends, you're my boss._ She thought, but she didn't voice her words.

Instead, she said. "Can I change first?" Annabeth asked, instead of saying a flat out yes. For some twisted reason that felt less scandalous.

Percy chuckled. "Yeah. You did bring those kind of clothes, right?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I'm prepared." She said. "I'll meet you down there."

Fifteen minutes later, she was seated in a fancy velvet chair, pulling at the fabric of her LBD, which seemed like a safe choice for the evening. Plus, it was the only thing she brought that was appropriate for this place. She had dry shampooed her hair, and gotten the frizz out so it was now hanging in soft curls around the nape of her neck. The view was gorgeous, the city lights of Nice twinkling in the distance, candlelit tables and soft conversation flowing around her.

She felt a hand settle on her back, and she tried not to jump. "Can I buy you a drink?" Percy asked, his voice husky. Annabeth tried not to shiver, turning and smiling up at him.

"Maybe." She said, biting back a laugh as he sat down across from her.

A waiter came over and asked what they'd like. "A bottle of your best red." Percy said instead, eyes never leaving her.

"So," Percy said, holding up his now full glass of wine. "Cheers."

"Cheers." Annabeth said softly, clinking glasses. "Mmm." She said, taking a sip. "This is amazing."

Percy chuckled. "Okay, I have two rules for tonight."

Annabeth nodded. "Shoot."

"No Rachel. No Grace." He said. "I want to know about you."

Annabeth blushed. "Percy-"  
"This is wrong, blah blah blah." He said, and Annabeth suppressed a smile. "It's right, so just give me on night where we don't have to think about it."

Annabeth sighed, taking another sip of wine. "Deal."

Percy gave her a loopy grin, and Annabeth felt her stomach start to churn. She hadn't felt butterflies this strong since… well, no even Luke didn't compare. This was on a whole other level. "Twenty questions." He said. "And we have to answer our own questions. I'll start. 1 - Where do you see yourself in ten years."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow, taking a drink. "A senior partner at an architecture firm. Married or in a long term relationship. Possibly a kid, depending on my relationship. A nice apartment, still in downtown. What about you?"  
Percy's eyes darkened. "Taking over for my dad, or soon anyway. Living a little simpler, maybe two kids, but not necessarily with… her." He blushed, choosing his words carefully.

Annabeth spoke up, saving them from an awkward moment. "Okay, 2 - What would your perfect morning be like?"

Percy didn't miss a beat. "Easy. It's raining, I wake up next to the love of my life, and Grace comes in, reminding us that parents don't get a perfect morning."

Annabeth laughed, tilting her head back slightly. "Okay, um, it's sunny, but not too warm so it's comfortable enough to cuddle. My boyfriend or whoever is already awake, and he brings me coffee, and then we go get brunch with our friends at The Butcher's Daughter."

Percy chuckled. "Good choice. Their straws are kind of weird though." He said, making a face.

Annabeth laughed. "True. Okay, you're turn."

"3 - What's the most scandalous thing you've ever done?" He asked.

Annabeth blushed just thinking about it. "Jesus, I try to forget this." She paused, laughing. "When I was in college, Piper and I were roommates freshman and sophomore year. I got so drunk I didn't even notice I slept with my ex boyfriend from high school, who had come over from visiting a friend at NYU. It was horrifying. Okay, your turn."

Percy laughed. "The first time I met my dad was at one of his parties on a yacht. Actually no, it was the second, but that doesn't matter. Anyways, there was this cute girl there, and I was seventeen and you know. We somehow got so drunk we ended up in my dad's bedroom, and he came in there to find us naked in his bed. Luckily we were already passed out by then, but it was pretty horrible. He still hasn't told my mom, but I'm waiting for the moment I get that call."

Annabeth was dying, trying to catch her breath. "That is mortifying." She said in between giggles.

"Please, mock me." Percy said, but he was smiling.

"Sorry to interrupt, but would you like anything else?" The waiter came by, and Percy noticed for the first time that their bottle was empty, along with their glasses.

"Annabeth?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, a gin & tonic, please." She said.

"I'll take a whiskey, straight." Percy said. "Okay, your turn." He turned his attention back to Annabeth.

"4 - What is the most beautiful view you've seen?" She asked.

Percy gave her a goofy grin. "You."

Annabeth blushed, hard. "Seriously."

"Seriously." He said, not breaking eye contact with her.

"Okay, well, I'll go." She said, taking a welcome drink of her renewed glass. "The New York City skyline on my flight over here before my freshman year at Colombia."

Percy sipped his whiskey. "Okay, 5 - What are you most insecure about?"

Annabeth thought about it for a second. "Being a woman. Not that I don't want to be, because I find it empowering sometimes. There are just other times I walk down the street, especially after a night out in a dress or something, and I feel so objectified. What about you?"

"How I became rich. It's not legit, and there were so many other people qualified for the job. I don't do a bad job, but it's just been in the past year or so that people have begun to respect me."

Annabeth nodded. "Um, 6 - What's something you wish you could have told yourself ten years ago?"

"Do better in school, not focus on girls and friends and parties and all that. In the end, it doesn't matter how popular you were or how many parties you went too. I'm lucky to have the job I have with my record in high school." He responded. "What about you?"

"Take risks." Annabeth said simply, sipping at the end of her drink.

"7 -" He said. "When do you feel most alive?"

Annabeth thought for a second, because she could go the safe route right now, or she could go where he wanted her too. "Dancing." She said. "And right now. Moments like this, where it's a little scandalous, a little crazy and I have the best feeling of butterflies in my stomach." She added, watching his expression. "When do you?" She asked quietly, biting her lip.

"Whenever I see you." He whispered. "Do you want to get out of here?"

Annabeth nodded, and Percy signaled the waiter, paying for their bill in cash. Annabeth wasn't sure she even wanted to know the total, but she didn't let it bother her.

They stumbled down the hall, Annabeth wishing she hadn't worn such stupid heels when she knew she was going to drink. She felt high, on alcohol, on laughter, on _him._

"This is me." She said, brushing her hair back as he smiled, caging her in against the wall. He was close, his breath hot and mixed with alcohol.

"This was probably the best night I've had all year." He said, his voice hoarse.

"Yeah?" She said. "Me too."

His lips were on hers before she could blink, his hands hot and heavy against her midriff, clawing at the fabric of her tight dress. She whimpered as he grabbed her ass, hoisting her up around his waist, and she grabbed his hair, pulling him tighter. They gasped, coming up for air before Percy was pulling at the strap of her dress, planting rough kisses along the curve of her breast.

He paused for a second, staring intensely down at her, green eyes swirling with all sorts of emotion. "Do you want to open the door? It's up to you."

Annabeth chewed her lip, before shaking her head. "I had a good - amazing night, Percy. But this, it isn't real." She said as he let her down.

He hung his head, and she stroked his hair. "You need to go back to your daughter." She whispered.

"I know." He said, pushing himself back up, giving her one last chaste kiss.

Annabeth turned her head before it got any more intense. "I had fun dreaming with you tonight." She said softly, opening her door and slipping in before he could say anything else.

-0-

Annabeth stretched, yawning as she registered the slight hangover she had this morning. Unfortunately, her five seconds of morning bliss were quickly over. The drinks, the flirting, the kiss that had sent electricity through her veins, it was all real. Annabeth was fucked. She should quit before she gets embarrassingly thrown out on her ass.

She checked her phone, noticing a text from Rachel.

 **Hope you had a good night!** Annabeth winced, it was almost like she knew. **We won't need you until tonight at 6, so you're free for the day. Feel free to use your card to pay for whatever, the spa, car service. It's all on us. Have a good day!**

Annabeth groaned, flopping out of bed, and managing to turn the shower on. She took a quick shower, wrapped herself in a towel and placed a call to the hotel spa. In ten minutes, she had a massage and facial booked, with a complimentary dip in their soaking pool and sauna. She ordered room service while getting dressed, and after eating croissants and coffee, she slipped into a yellow sundress and headed out for the spa.

Two and a half hours later, Annabeth was feeling refreshed and almost ready to face that family again. She took the car service into Nice, bought herself a silk shirt and a tight black jumpsuit. When she got back, she changed into her swimsuit and laid out by the pool for an hour or so. If she hadn't had to go back to their room tonight, the day would have been perfect.

Of course, the dreaded hour rolled around sooner than she would have liked. Rachel opened the door, adjusting the strap on her professional looking blue bodycon dress. "Hi, come in!" She said.

"Annabeth!" Grace squealed, running up and giving her a hug.

Annabeth grinned. "Hi, sweetie, how was your day?"

"Good! We went swimming and shopping and we ate yummy food." She said, clinging on to Annabeth's leg.

"Yeah, that's cool!" Annabeth said. "You can tell me all about it in a minute, hold on." She said, as Rachel ran around the room collecting her things. A pang of guilt hit her, and she suddenly felt the need to vomit.

"Evening, Annabeth." Percy said, smiling at her.

"Hi." Annabeth said - or more whispered, since she couldn't seem to get the word to come out of her mouth. How was he so calm about this? The thought made her wonder if he had done this whole thing before. Rachel had mentioned another nanny, but… no. She refused to believe Percy was that kind of guy, she refused to believe she would fall for a guy like that.

"Okay, ready Percy?" Rachel asked, slipping on her diamonds. "We won't be long, probably back by ten at the latest."

"Great," Annabeth said. "See you guys soon." She said, and they left, Percy sending her a little wave as he went to close the door.

 **a/n: Hope you guys enjoyed this! It was fun to write :) I'm uploading this before class since my parents are coming to visit me this weekend (I won't have to eat cafeteria food!) and I won't have time otherwise.**

 **Tell me what you think and review!**

 **-a**


	9. Fire

Chapter 9

Percy

Saturday afternoon at the resort, Rachel took Grace to the spa and swimming, and then they were eating dinner just the two of them in Nice after. Basically, Percy was kicked out, which he didn't exactly mind since it gave him time to really think about what had happened between him and Annabeth.

He had never felt something like that before. The fire running through him when they kissed, the excitement he felt when he just heard her name or her voice. It wasn't that he had thought he was settling for Rachel, but he just never knew it could feel like this.

He didn't know what to do. His marriage was basically in the garbage, and Annabeth wasn't making it any easier to want to fix things. He couldn't stay married to Rachel after all that, though, the feeling's Annabeth gave him. It wasn't fair to any of them.

There was a sharp knock at the door, and Percy hauled himself off the couch, beer in hand.

"Do you do this with all your nannies?" Annabeth asked, storming past him without saying anything else.

"Hi to you too." Percy said, chuckling. "Want a drink?"

She turned and glared at him, and Percy decided he never wanted to see that again. The girl was downright scary. "Don't avoid my question." She snapped.

"Of course not." Percy said. "Annabeth, I sware on my life. Things with Rachel were fine until a few months ago."

She sighed, sinking down on the couch. "You mean before I came along."

"No." He said firmly, sitting across from her. "Annabeth, I - I've never felt like this before. About anyone. I wouldn't be risking my marriage, my life like this if this wasn't real."

She put her head in her hands, and he reached a tentative hand out, stroking her curls. "Trust me, I wouldn't be risking this if I felt like I could stay away."

"Rachel and I…" He started, trying to find the right words. "We started fighting in June, May, right when Gracie got out of school. True, it's gotten worse since you've been here, but that's between us."

Annabeth stared at him before she got up, dragged him out of his room by the collar of his shirt, and pulled him into hers before pushing his lips onto hers. Their bodies fit perfectly together, and Annabeth pulled him closer. He reached his hands below the hem of her shirt, lifting it slightly, ghosting his fingers over her bare skin.

She shivered beneath him, before, "Off." She commanded, and he didn't waste anytime. He lifted the black tube top over her head, her bare breasts staring back at him. She pulled his shirt off, her hands roaming over every inch of his body. They made their way backwards, before Annabeth bumped into the bed frame, eliciting a squeal that made his pants tighten even more.

Her hands were frantically undoing his belt buckle, but he stopped her, pressing a kiss to the space between her breasts as she lay down, making eye contact. He slid the linen shorts down, exposing a white lace thong. She relaxed as he caught the garment between his teeth, scraping as he pulled each side down at a slow pace. Once her clothes were out of the way, he sucked a searing hickey into her upper thigh, making her give a sharp breath.

"Fuck." She whispered as he neared his target, tentatively licking her folds with his tongue. She gasped, arching her back and tugging on his hair. "Fuck, Percy." She said, louder this time, and he took that as encouragement. He took her clit in his mouth, sucking and kissing until she was writhing on the bed, moaning so loud she took the nearest pillow and bit down on the edge.

He pulled away, his loopy grin the last memory she could put into words of the night.

-0-

Annabeth hummed with post-coital bliss as Percy pushed himself off of her. "That was good." She whispered tucking her bare body into his. He stroked her hair, kissing the top of her head.

"You're beautiful." He said quietly, watching color rush to her cheeks. She looked up at him, eyes lidded, and gave him a soft kiss.

"I'm hungry." She said against his lips, and he could feel her grin. He pulled away laughing.

"You get the room service, I'll run a bath?" He suggested, and she grinned, nodding. He sat up, pulling a robe from the closet and turning on the hot water as she reached for the phone.

"Hi, can I get two burgers and fries please? And a bottle of champagne." She paused, listening as Percy threw in the bubble bath. "Great, thank you."

She came up behind him in a navy blue silk robe, wrapping her arms around his waist, and pressing a kiss to his shoulder. "Ten minutes." She murmured.

Percy hummed, turning around to face her. "Just enough time." He said, slipping off her robe and trying not to run back to the bed.

-0-

That night, Percy had never felt farther from Rachel than he was right now. In the back of his head, it was over between them. It had been over since before Annabeth came along.

If it had just been about him and Rachel, he would have told her he wanted a divorce right then and there. But there was Grace. And keeping up appearances, as horrible as that sounded, but it was true.

"Honey," Rachel called from the bathroom. "Can you come clasp this?"

It was Sunday morning, the day of the auction and Rachel was having a meltdown. She was dressed in a professional blazer and skirt, and was fretting around the bathroom trying to choose between small diamonds and big ones like it was the most important thing in her life.

Percy got up from his spot on the floor with Grace and Annabeth, where they had been playing with her dolls. The weird thing was, ever since that night, him and Annabeth were totally comfortable around each other now. Maybe it was the release of sexual tension, who knows.

"Ready?" Percy asked.

Rachel took a deep breath. "Yeah, let's go. Bye, you guys!" She said, waving to Annabeth and Grace. Their limo ride was quiet, with Rachel fidgeting the whole way there. The auction was in the Musee Marc Chagall, an old restored French building. Percy sighed, preparing himself for the most boring morning of his life.

Annabeth

Annabeth and Grace were trying to get outside to the pool when she got a response from Ethan. "Do you want the pink two piece or the blue one piece?" Annabeth asked, holding up the two options, trying to get Grace to focus. She had said she wanted to go swimming a few minutes ago, but wasn't really into the whole getting ready part of it. Annabeth's phone dinged, and she picked it up, opening it without looking.

"Pink." She said, grabbing it from Annabeth and marching for the bathroom. Annabeth sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

 **Hey! Sorry, I was out of town for work. How have you been?**

Annabeth groaned. She had almost forgotten she had texted him. Was this fair? Could she do two guys at once?

Yes. She was a modern woman, she decided with the kind of headstrong attitude that always got her in trouble.

 **Good!** She responded. **Luckily, I got the dirt stains out of my jeans :)** Annabeth, satisfied with her response, shut her phone and put Ethan out of her head for the time being.

She was feeling like a horrible person. She was kind of hoping she could try it, hate Percy, and then move on with her life. Of course, that wasn't how it happened. Last night was the best sex of her life. She honestly couldn't even find it in herself to stay away, which made her feel even worse.

"Ready!" Grace announced, coming out in her swimsuit.

"Okay, shoes and sunscreen." Annabeth said as she tried to hold her down and make sure sunscreen covered her entire body. "Okay, let's go." She said, taking Grace's hand and leading her down the hall and out into the warm early fall day.

Grace slipped her hand out of Annabeth's skipping the rest of the way to the pool. "Jackson." She announced to the person at the gate. The boy, probably a few years younger than Annabeth, laughed.

"Hi, sorry." Annabeth said, catching up to her. "Grace, don't go running off like that." She scolded, but the guy just smiled.

"Let's see, Jackson." He said, flipping through his list. "Your cabana is the last one on the right. Enjoy."

"Thank you." Annabeth said, grabbing hold of Grace's hand again. It wasn't too busy there, only a few cabanas being used. Annabeth slipped off her cover up and began lathering herself in tanning sunscreen. There were two lounge chairs, a TV, complimentary drink service on an iPad, where Annabeth ordered herself a Pina Colada, and a miniature lounge chair for Grace.

Grace settled in on her chair, leaning back and closing her eyes.

Annabeth stared at her. "Don't you want to go in?"

Grace shook her head. "I'm tanning, can you open the top?"

Annabeth tried not to burst out laughing, shaking her head and opening it up. She laid out on the chair, and closed her eyes. Ten minutes later, she was being shaken by Grace's small hand.

"I'm bored." She announced. "Can we go in the pool?"

"Yes." Annabeth said, trying not to laugh. A waiter came around and passed her the drink, and Annabeth took a refreshing sip. "Ready?" She asked, and Grace nodded. She was a good swimmer, which Annabeth was thankful for since she never really had to keep an eye out for her. The water was cool, but it felt nice after soaking in the sun. The infinity pool looked out over the French Riviera, and the view was absolutely stunning.

They splashed around for thirty minutes or so before Grace started complaining about her skin shriveling. They got out and dried off, and she was about to order another drink, a virgin one for Grace and a strong one for her when Grace let out a squeal.

"You're back!" She said, jumping into Percy's hug.

Percy laughed, meeting Annabeth's eyes. "How was the auction?" She asked.

"Good. Rachel got her painting." He said. "She's out to lunch with her coworkers, and then they're going wine tasting to celebrate."  
"Mommy's not coming?" Grace asked in a heartbreaking voice.

Percy winced. "She'll be back for dinner, promise. In the meantime, I was thinking we could go get some lunch in Nice?" He said, glancing back at Annabeth, eyes locked so intensely she couldn't help but blush.

"With Annabeth?" Grace asked.

"Of course, it's mean to exclude." Percy said, setting her down.

"I want Annabeth to come!" Grace said, hugging her leg.

"Are you… okay with that?" He asked hesitantly. They hadn't had a chance to talk about anything that happened between them, and him asking just made her more attracted to him.

Annabeth smiled softly, "Of course, let's just go shower and change first."

Percy's face broke into a wide grin. "Okay, let's go."

-0-

Annabeth got her first taste of what life in Percy's world would really be like that day.

She was seated in a limo next to Percy, Grace on the other side. There was a console in between them, stocked with champagne and fruit and chocolate. One thing she had realized was that rich people never stopped drinking. They were constantly buzzed.

She wore mauve colored loose linen pants with a white tube top and strappy black wedges. Grace was bouncing up and down in the seat across from them, and Percy and Annabeth were constantly reaching into the console, pulling out fruit, glasses, champagne, anything to let their hands touch for a fraction of a second. The whole thing felt so scandalous, it was kind of turning her on in a weird way.

"Mr. Jackson, we'll be arriving in about five minutes. Your reservation at Le Chantecler has been reserved." The driver said, rolling up the screen when he was finished. Second thing she learned about rich people; they ate out, constantly, and never anything less than Michelin stars.

"Hi," Percy said to the hostess as Annabeth listened to Grace rattle on about this new friend she had at her school. "Reservation for Jackson."

"Yes, right here. This way please, Mr. and Mrs. Jackson." She said, and Annabeth was about to protest when Percy put his hand on her arm, shaking his head.

She stayed quiet until they got to their seats, before leaning over and whispering. "We should have said something."

"No." He responded quietly, as they both checked to make sure Grace was still busy with her crayons. "It would cause a scene that you weren't my wife. Things aren't as progressive in Europe, especially in the country."

Annabeth still wanted to argue that it wasn't right, but Grace was listening now. "What are you going to get?" Annabeth asked her, changing the topic.

"Chicken nuggets." She said, grinning.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Don't you ever want to branch out?"

"Nope!" She said before going back to drawing.

The waiter came around, and Percy ordered some bottle of wine for the two of them and a lemonade for Grace.

"I'm not even hungry." Annabeth said, skimming over the menu which was full of things that cost half her allotted budget for food in a week.

"Let's share then." Percy said simply.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "That's weird."

"Why?" Percy asked, raising his eyebrows. "We shared a lot before." Annabeth, who was taking a sip of her wine, almost spit it all out. She slapped him, hard, on the knee, but he just chuckled. "Charcuterie board?" He asked.

Annabeth nodded, not quite ready to form words yet. Gods, her life was crazy right now.

a/n: This chapter is short, and I'm sorry about that. School has slowed down a little since midterms are over, so I will have more time to write (hopefully). There won't be very many of those kinds of scenes either in this, just a couple more probably. I'm not a huge fan of them, but sex is an important part of life, and a needed point in this story, so sorry if it offended you! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter.

Review!

\- a


	10. Breathless

Chapter 10

Annabeth

As Annabeth sat in her Advanced Architectural Design in the Metropolis class, her head was pounding, It was 10:30 in the morning, and the teacher was so boring Annabeth thought she was going have to kill herself before the class was over. She had wanted to ditch so bad, but Annabeth hadn't ditched a class since freshman year, and that had not ended well. She missed an entire project assignment, and had to do it all on her own since she wasn't there to partner up. So, she had a thing about ditching.

As her professor droned on about some building in New York, Annabeth's phone buzzed in her pocket. She checked it immediately, grateful for the distraction.

 **Percy: What are you doing?**

Annabeth internally groaned. _Aren't you supposed to be working?_ She texted back.

 **I'm bored.**

 _So am I._

 **Come over.**

 _Is this a booty call?_ She hid her smile, because it most definitely was. They had barely touched each other since that night last weekend in France, but they both knew it was going to happen again.

 **Do you want it to be?**

 _I'm in class._

 **I could bend you over the very desk you're sitting in. Or, you could walk into my office and I could press your tits up against the window.**

 _Percy, stop._

 **Pretty sure you'd be having a better time over here.**

Annabeth pressed her legs together, tight. The overall sleepy vibe in the classroom, the desperation building between her legs, and she knew she wasn't going to make it a second longer. She swung her bag over her shoulder, and stalked out of the classroom without a second glance back.

Then she got a second text.

 **Are you in class right now?** Ethan asked.

Annabeth paused on the street, responding. **Just got out, what's up?**

 **I'm in the neighborhood, want to grab a coffee?** He asked.

Annabeth chewed her lip. They had been texting, a lot lately. Mostly harmless flirting. She had stalked his social media to make sure he wasn't a creep. He was _good._ Like, bringing back to family good, marriage good, good for her, for her future.

So of course, she made the wrong choice. **Sorry!** She said. **I have to go study with a friend, raincheck?**

 **Of course.** He responded, and Annabeth tried not to give him a second thought.

"Hi." She said to Mary, thirty minutes later. "I'm here for Percy? He said he wasn't busy, we have some things to discuss." She said, trying to sound like there was a legitimate reason she was here.

Mary just looked irritated. "Mr. Jackson." She said, pressing an intercom button.

"Yes?" His voice called, garbled by the technology.

"Annabeth Chase is here to see you." She said, twirling her pencil.

"Oh, great, send her in please." He said.

"Sure. Please schedule her next time, I don't have time to deal with your constant irregularities." She said, rolling her eyes and opening the doors for Annabeth.

She made her way down the hallway, trying to avoid the eyes of all his co-workers, even though they knew nothing other than he was having a meeting.

"So," Percy said as she opened the door. "You decided to come." He smirked. He was wearing a maroon suit today, his tie already discarded on the desk, sleeves rolled up.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "You're lucky my class couldn't have gotten more boring." She said as she settled in on his lap after making sure the door was locked.

"You're wearing glasses." He stated quietly.

Annabeth blushed. "I use them in class."

He kissed her, slowly. "I like them." He whispered, his voice dropping an octave.

Annabeth kissed him again, sliding her hands to his button down, starting the slow process. They stood up, never breaking away as he pushed her against a low cabinet, her hips pressing against it. The view of Manhattan was clear as she gasped and threw her head back to give him clearer access to her neck. He hiked her mini skirt up and slid into her without warning.

His hand came around and pressed against her bundle of nerves, and Annabeth let out a load moan, the sound of their arousals sliding together drowning her out. His thrusts became erratic, and Annabeth could feel the pit in the bottom of her stomach. She reached her climax, biting her hand to stop from screaming as she pushed him over the edge with her.

Percy slumped against her back, his hot breath on her ear. She twisted in his arms, giving him a soft kiss.

"Missed you." He murmured, kissing her once more.

"Missed you too." She said, smiling softly.

"Want to go get lunch?" He suggested, and she laughed.

"You are always hungry." She said, pulling her panties back up and skirt down.

Percy shrugged, buttoning up his shirt. "I'm a growing boy."

Annabeth scoffed as he opened the door for her. "Yeah, right."

"I'll be back in thirty minutes." He said to Mary as he pressed the elevator button for them. "Just grabbing lunch."

"Mhmm." Mary hummed, barely looking up.

Annabeth laughed as they stepped in. "I don't think she likes you very much."

Percy waved his hand. "She's like my aunt. She's worked for my dad for so many years she has this weird seniority over me. So, a cafe or sushi?"

"Sushi." Annabeth answered immediately.

Percy smiled, interlacing his fingers with hers. "Good choice." He led her a few blocks uptown before stopping at a little hole in the wall place called Sushi Azabu.

Of course, that hole in the wall turned out to be a thirty dollar per roll place. "Percy," Annabeth said as he ordered sake. "We need to stop going out to places that cost three hundred dollars per meal."

Percy looked up from his menu. "I like spoiling you." He said, taking her hand across the table and pressing a kiss to her knuckles. Annabeth tried not to grimace, her mind unfortunately flashing back to the last time she let somebody speak to her like that.

"I know, but seriously. I feel bad making you pay every time." She said, taking a drink of sake with her free hand.

"Don't." He said. "But okay. What are you doing Sunday morning?"

Annabeth couldn't help but smile. "Hanging out with you?" She said, laughing.

He grinned. "I'll pick you up at eleven."

"Okay." She said, biting her lip to keep her smile from getting any bigger. "What did you want?" She asked as they returned to their menus.

-0-

After happy hour at Ousia, dinner at Le Coucou, and now their first bar stop of the night, Penthouse 808 in Long Island City, Annabeth, Piper, Thalia and Hazel had had a long Saturday night.

Annabeth was now extremely drunk, which probably wasn't the best idea since she was supposed to be keeping a pretty big secret. She was wearing a light blue lace bodycon dress, and her heels were killing her feet.

"Do you think it's appropriate to take my shoes off?" She said, leaning in at their table on the rooftop bar, the skyline glittering behind them.

The girls giggled. "I'm really thinking the same thing right now." Piper said, laughing.

"Ladies." Their waiter said, coming up to their table. "What can I get started for you?"

"Hi." Annabeth said, staring up at their cute waiter. "I'll have the…" She frowned, staring at the menu, then started giggling. "I've got no fucking clue how to say that."

Their waiter held back a laugh as her friends snickered behind their hands. "A kanaloa?"

"Yep." Annabeth said, leaning back in her seat. "That's the one." Her friends ordered, and the waiter left, shaking his head.

"Maybe we should get some food." Hazel suggested. "It's only midnight, we might last longer."

"Yes, please." Thalia said. "I'm starving."

"Thalia, we just ate dinner." Piper said, rolling her eyes.

"Drinking makes me hungry." Thalia said.

"Where are we going after this?" Hazel asked, taking a sip of her lychee martini that arrived.

Annabeth snorted. "Home, I have a date." She covered her mouth, giggling. "Oops!"

"Annabeth!" Piper squealed. "With who?"

Annabeth shook her head. "It's a secret." She said, giggling again. She downed the rest of her drink, then got out some cash from her wallet. "Actually, I should be going." She said, setting the cash down under her drink so it didn't blow away.

"What?" Hazel asked. "We just sat down."

"I know, but I totally forgot about tomorrow." Annabeth said, wavering as she stood in her heels. "I'll see you guys later, I'm so sorry. Love you." Annabeth said, squeezing Thalia's hand on her way out. Love you's were murmured behind her and Annabeth found her way to the elevator, hailing a taxi home.

-0-

Percy was knocking on her door at 11 AM sharp. "One minute!" She called out, pulling on some boots and a light jacket. It was mid October by now, and the weather was sharp, but sunny. "Hi." Annabeth said, breathless as she opened the door.

He pulled her in for a kiss. "Hi." He said, grinning against her lips.

"Ready?" She asked, taking his hand and shutting her door.

"You look stunning." He said, giving her a quick kiss while they waited for the elevator.

Annabeth blushed. "I'm not even wearing any makeup."

Percy chuckled. "Even better."

Annabeth blushed harder, allowing him to lead her into the small box. "So," She said. "What are we doing?"

"Secret." He said, walking her towards his Mercedes.

Annabeth laced their hands together. "I hate secrets." She said.

Percy laughed, squeezing her hand. "You'll like this one." He said. They talked about anything and everything - besides the topic that seemed to loom over them every time they hung out. Everytime Annabeth thought about it, she would want to unlace their hands, walk away, get out of the car. But then she would look into his eyes again, sucked in like he was some sort of vortex or drug. He was intoxicating and infuriating all at the same time.

Eventually, Percy pulled over by the Great Lawn in Central Park, somehow finding a spot right in front. He got out and opened the door for her.

"M'lady." He said with a smirk, and Annabeth giggled, taking his outstretched hand. It was a beautiful fall day, the leaves turning bright oranges and reds, the crisp breeze outside making her wrap her coat tighter around herself. He led her to a spot on the edge where nobody else was, and laid out a plaid picnic blanket and a spread of cheeses, crackers, meats, desserts and a glass of expensive red wine. Annabeth couldn't help the smile that spread across her cheeks.

"So." Percy said as they settled in, Annabeth kicking off her heeled boots to get more comfortable. "Is this surprise okay?" He asked, grinning as he poured the wine into the plastic picnic cups.

Annabeth laughed. "Of course." She said, taking a sip of wine. She gratefully accepted the plate of food, and they tasted the different cheese he had brought. Apparently he had extra imported French cheese from a party he and she-who-they-didn't-name had thrown last weekend, and Annabeth didn't know whether to just revel in his money or feel like she didn't deserve it.

They were having a wonderful time. Laughing and joking around, kissing some. Talking about dreams and life and everything. Annabeth was having a great time, but of course she had to self sabotage herself like she always did.

"Sometimes I wish we lived more simply." Percy said as they came down from laughing about a dog in the park.

"What do you mean?" Annabeth asked, stopping to look at him.

"I just… do you ever feel like you aren't making a difference in the world? You're just making it worse?" Percy asked.

Annabeth laughed, but he was serious. "I guess. Not really." She said.

"I do." He said, taking his eyes off her to stare at the blue sky. "I just have all this money, and I do nothing with it besides buy Mercedes and rent my penthouse and buy Chanel bags for Rachel." He rambled.

"You could do something good with it." Annabeth suggested quietly.

Percy was silent for a second, before completely changing the subject and they were laughing again pretty soon after.

"How's school?" He asked, after there giggling fit over throwing crackers in the air and trying to catch them was over.

Annabeth shrugged. "As good as school can be, I guess. I'm just ready to be done and get a real job."

Percy chuckled. "You mean being a full time mom isn't your dream life."

Annabeth shot him a look. "I love Grace, you know that. I just… architecture has always been my dream, you know? I'm so close now."

Percy smiled, placing a hand on her upper thigh. "I know." He said, giving her a kiss. "I'm proud of you."

Annabeth smiled against his lips. "I know." She said, grinning.

"Tell me about your family." He said, pulling away, his eyes locked on hers.

Annabeth pressed her lips together. "They're… not something I like to talk about." She said, playing with their intertwined fingers.

"Where do they live?" Percy asked, kissing her knuckles. Annabeth felt pressure in her chest, and her stomach churned. She hadn't let anybody in like this in… years. High school, even.

"San Francisco." Annabeth said. "My mom, she's crazy.. She left when I was seven because they fought so much about her work. Then my dad brought this girl home, they had twin boys, and I… just disappeared. I mean, not literally, but they had their family. I wasn't a part of it." She shrugged, not enjoying the sympathetic look on Percy's face. "It's not a big deal, really. I came over here for college, and I haven't been back since."

Percy gaped at her. "You haven't seen them in six years?"

Annabeth shook her head. She shouldn't be talking about this with him. All it was going to do was get her hurt. "No, I have. They come for holidays sometimes, and we talk on the phone occasionally. It's been a year or so though. I met my friends, and they became my family."

Instead of responding, he pulled her onto his lap, and kissed her. When he pulled away, he brushed the stray curl out of her face, his slightly chapped lips parted. "I-"

Annabeth softly smiled. "What?"

"Nothing." He said, shaking his head. "You're beautiful."

Annabeth blushed, but pushed herself off of him, the weight on her chest almost suffocating her now. "Look, Percy… I need this job."

He nodded vigorously. "I know." He said.

"And…" She stopped, chewing on her bottom lip. "And I think I need to make this clear that this is just sex. Nothing else." Annabeth mentally kicked herself. Why couldn't she just be normal?

Percy looked at her, his eyes slightly pained. "Yeah." He said. "Okay."

"Okay?" She said, brushing his black hair out of his eyes. She kissed him, then stood up. "I think I should get going. Text me, when you're free next." She said, and he nodded, his eyes far away. Annabeth turned, trying not to glance back. She wiped at a surprising tear that had appeared, shaking her head. She couldn't - wasn't - going to get emotionally attached.

 **a/n: 10th chapter! Thanks for all the reviews on the last one, I hope you guys are all enjoying the romance while it lasts. Also, just to let you guys know, I plan on having about thirty chapters for this story.**

 **Review and enjoy!**

 **-a**


	11. Fall

Chapter 11

Percy

Percy groaned, shrugging off his jacket as he tried to focus on the problem at work. Instead, his mind was wandering to his current love life situation. Everyday, he grew farther away from Rachel and closer to Annabeth.

He and Rachel hadn't even slept in the same bed these past few nights. She had kicked him out after they had a big fight because he didn't do the dishes immediately when he got home. Percy wasn't sure when Rachel had gotten so high strung, but it was making him absolutely crazy. Or maybe he had just been blinded by love, and now he was picking out every little thing he didn't like about her.

Annabeth, on the other hand, was doing everything she could to distance herself from Percy while still seeing him. Lately they had only said two words to each other, fucked, then said goodbye. Given, they had seen each other every day. One night at the plaza, two at Annabeth's studio, one night at a hotel in Soho, one afternoon in his car. They were so horny (and drunk) one night, they met up on the subway and did it in an empty car at three AM like high school teenagers.

"Stay." He said this night, pulling her back down onto the hotel bed with him. She was glowing, like she always did post-sex. Bright grey eyes wide, hair slightly frizzy, sticking to the back of her neck.

"Percy, I…" She trailed off, glancing up at him.

"Just, ten minutes." He pleaded. He knew he sounded needy, or whiny, whatever, but he needed her. It was unhealthy, really, the level of attraction he felt towards her. It was consuming him. He thought about her all day, the slight curve of her hips, her little grin that always appeared after they were done, the way she bit her lip when she was nervous or embarrassed. The way she twirled her hair when she was bored, the way she blinked up at him so innocently when he would say something. Sometimes she would laugh, sometimes she would roll her eyes, but it almost always ended in a kiss.

She gave in tonight, laying her head down on his bare sweaty chest, letting out a little sigh. She traced patterns on his stomach, and pressed a light kiss to his neck.

He stroked her hair, and they stayed like that for a long time - too long.

"I'm late for my night class." She murmured. This was the first time they had gone from her babysitting straight to a hotel, and Percy was trying to push the thought out of his mind.

"Then don't go." He suggested, and she laughed.

"Percy, eventually I want to move on from nannying. I mean, I love Grace but it's not exactly my life aspirations." She said, grinning before she realized she ruined the mood by bringing it up. Annabeth sighed, swinging her legs out of bed and grabbing her denim skirt. "I need to go." She said.

Percy stayed silent, rolling on his side and propping himself up on his elbow to watch her get dressed. It was October now, and the sun set at six. She glowed in the moonlight that shone through the hotel blinds at Nomo.

She buttoned up her white blouse, slipped on her ankle boots and camel trench coat, and leaned over Percy, giving him one final kiss. "I-" She started, then shook her head, looking disoriented. "I'll see you tomorrow." She said instead of whatever she was about to say. Percy just gave her a little grin, and watched her small athletic figure walk out the door.

-0-

Fall in Manhattan meant three things: rain, more money spent on cabs, and redecorating. At least, that's what it meant for Rachel and her huge Halloween, Welcome Fall, whatever you wanted to call it party. It was Rachel's event of the season.

Rich people were weird, Percy had learned in the five years he and Rachel had been rich together. Rachel had always been wealthy. Her dad was a real estate mogul, who owned basically half of the city. Percy on the other hand, did not understand why every socialite in Manhattan felt the need to throw some party every time a weekend happened.

Anyways, Rachel's was happening that Friday, and she had been even more stressed out and irritable than usual. Even Grace, who was five, picked up on it. Rachel had caterers running in and out of the apartment every five seconds. A florist was currently taking measurements of their tables, and Annabeth was getting paid double to help as Rachel's personal assistant or whatever.

Annabeth seemed like a natural at it, which made Percy wonder if there was something she wasn't telling him about her past. She swept her hair up into a ponytail, and immediately took Rachel's iPad from her, typing in something Percy probably wouldn't understand.

Percy shook his head, trying not to cringe at the mess unfolding in his house. He put in his headphones, and motioned to Rachel that he was going for a run. She barely acknowledged him, just a slight tilt of her head, and Percy tried not to think much of it.

Ten minutes later, he was entering Central Park on 79th street, going for his usual route past the paper boat lake and Bethesda Fountain.

"Hey!" A voice – Jason's – yelled from behind him. Percy turned to find Jason jogging towards him. "What are you doing out here?" He asked when he caught up with Percy.

Percy turned and kept jogging but pulled one earphone out. "Dude, I live right there." He said, grinning and giving his friend a light shove.

Jason rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you be at work?" He asked.

Percy shook his head. "Rachel's party is tomorrow, so she wanted me to stay home to help but she currently has Annabeth for that."

Jason chuckled. "I really don't envy your life sometimes."

Percy groaned, coming to a stop as they reached the fountain. "Yeah, well at least you love Piper." He muttered under his breath. He hadn't meant for it to come out, because he hadn't even admitted it to himself that he didn't love her yet, but unfortunately Jason heard.

"Whoa." He said, pulling Percy over to the steps where a hundred tourists were resting and taking pictures. He wondered if they were taking pictures of him and Jason – natural New Yorkers or whatever. This wasn't a weird idea. It had happened before. "You what?"

Percy hung his head in his hands, sighing. "We haven't slept in the same bed for like a week." He said quietly. "And we can't even get through hello without fighting. Actually, we just don't talk anymore."

Jason was silent for a minute. "What are you gonna do?" He asked.

Percy shook his head, brushing a hand through his hair. "I don't know. Just… just forget I ever said anything. I'll figure it out."

"Okay," Jason said, scratching his head. "Look, I have to get home and help Piper with wedding planning or she's going to kill me. We should get drinks this weekend, with Frank and Leo?" He said, standing up and putting his airpods back in.

Percy nodded. "Yeah, Saturday at nine?" He asked. He had "plans" with Annabeth, but he figured it would be good for him to spend some time around people that weren't causing major turmoil in his head.

Jason nodded. "See you then." He said, then ran back the way they had came from.

-0-

Back at the house, Rachel was finally not surrounded by people. Annabeth had gone to pick Grace up for school, the florist was gone, the caterers were done, and she was between appointments with her stylist and the interior decorator.

"Where did you go?" She demanded as soon as the elevator opened. She was standing over the island in their kitchen, swiping through her iPad. Percy sighed and went to grab a diet Coke from the fridge.

"I didn't think you'd even notice I was gone." Percy snapped back, popping open the can.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Those are horrible for you." She said.

Percy just chugged it. When he was done, he set it on the counter instead of the trash, which he knew drove Rachel crazy. It was petty, yeah, but he couldn't help himself.

"Can you stop?" She said, picking up his can and throwing it away.

"Stop what, Rach." He said, standing in the doorway.

"Just… you know!" She said, storming off upstairs. "You know," She said, turning around at the top of the stairs. "If you came home every once and awhile, you might now." She snapped.

"Why would I come home when all we do is fight?" He yelled after her, and he could hear the door slam before he was finished. He slammed his palm down on the table and put his head in his hands.

"Daddy?" He heard a small voice question not too long after.

"Hey, lovebug." He said, lifting his head immediately at the sound of her voice.

"What's wrong?" She asked, her cute face scrunching up her nose.

Percy tried to put on a smile, vaguely aware of Annabeth standing a few steps behind her. "Just tired, sweetie. Mommy's upstairs if you want to go say hi." He suggested.

Grace shrugged. "Okay," She said, running up the stairs.

Annabeth took a tentative step towards him. "Perce…" She trailed off, reaching a hand out.

Percy shook his head. "I'm fine."

Annabeth scoffed, and he looked up to see her shaking her head. "You're not, but whatever."

He stood up, grabbing her arm as she tried to walk out. "Hey, you're the one that said this was only sex." He protested.

Annabeth pulled her arm away, glaring. "Let go of me."

"Well, what do you want, Annabeth? I fight everyday with Rachel, we don't say more than two words to each other, I just - what do you want from me?" He said, raising his voice with each word until Annabeth had shrunken back into the corner.

"Keep your voice down." Annabeth hissed.

"I don't care." He responded, knowing he was acting like an absolute child but he couldn't help himself. "Just, get out of my house." She winced, and Percy's heart hurt, but he didn't take back the words.

"I- Rachel, I'm - I'm working." She stuttered, picking up her bag and swinging it over her shoulder.

"I'll make something up." He muttered. "Just leave, I'll call you later." He said, trying to make the words less painful but he could still see the sting in her eyes.

She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it and turned to leave. Percy felt something wet slide down his cheek, and he pushed it away. He couldn't get close to her like that.

Annabeth

Annabeth stumbled out of the penthouse, tripping even in her kitten heel. Her tears were blurring her vision, so she stuck her hand out, hoping some cab would pull over for her.

"177 Prince St." She choked out, and the cab driver just looked at her. "Drive!" She said, and he waved his hand speeding off into the traffic. Annabeth opened up her compact mirror, desperately swiping at her mascara stained cheeks, refusing to cry over him.

 _Just sex._ She repeated over and over again in her head. _Just sex._ She thought, holding back another sob.

By the time she got home, she was a wreck. The guy in the elevator stared at her like she was a freak.

"What?" She snapped at him. "Never seen a crying girl before?" She asked. He just put his hands up in defense and got off on the fifth floor. She rubbed her temples, getting off on the tenth floor.

Her apartment - well, studio - was a mess. She hadn't spent more than one or two hours at a time here besides sleeping. There were chinese takeout boxes littering the kitchen counter. Her bed was unmade and she hadn't washed the sheets since the last time she and Percy were there. Her bathroom had multiple empty bottles of shampoo and moisturizers littering the ground. If her parents showed up, they would probably ship her back to San Francisco, claiming she couldn't live on her own.

Honestly, they would be more right than she would like them to be.

She flopped down on her bed, the second pillow still smelling faintly of Percy's weird,

ocean and clean laundry scent that somehow worked for him. She was just settling in on her bed with a cup of tea and one of her favorite books that always made her feel better when her phone rang.

She had the slightest bit of hope that it was Percy, but of course she was let down as soon as she picked it up. "Dad." She sighed, picking up the phone.

"Hey, sweetie." He said. "How are you?"

"Um, fine." She said. "What's up?" She asked.

"What are you doing next weekend?" He asked. "I'm going to be here for business on Thursday, but I was thinking of bringing the whole family for a vacation and we can see you."

Annabeth tried not to sigh or sound to annoyed. Honestly, she didn't want to see them. The last time she saw them was Christmas three years ago, and they had never visited her in New York. She didn't need the headache. She had done just fine without them, and was trying to come up with a good excuse when her dad started talking again.

"Annabeth, we miss you. I miss you." He said.

Annabeth groaned. "No, I'm not doing anything." She said. In reality, what was one dinner?

"Great!" Her dad said. "It'll be a fun weekend. You'll have to take us to all the good restaurants." He said, and Annabeth almost choked. The whole weekend?

"I, um." She started but just shook her head, rubbing her temples. "Yeah, sounds great. I'll see you guys soon."

"Okay. Love you." He said.

"Love you too." She said, more out of obligation than anything. They hung up, and Annabeth sighed. She laid out the two choices she had; take a nap, or text Ethan.

She went with the latter, and two hours later she was sitting in a coffee shop in the West Village, laughing with him. He was normal, and nice and very attractive. Plus, he was good for her. He complimented her, made her smile, and he was everything she should have ever wanted.

Yet, when he walked her back to her apartment and leaned in, Annabeth blushed and nervously laughed instead of reciprocating. She gave him an empty promise of a text, and went back into her apartment, falling asleep without taking her makeup off.

-0-

By the time she woke up the next morning, Percy had left seven voicemails, eighteen missed calls and thirty seven text messages. Annabeth groaned, her head pounding as if she had gone out drinking last night.

She listened to the first one, which she figured would be the most important and coherent. "Hey." He started. "I… I fucked up. Please call me back."

Annabeth sighed, pressing play on the next one. "Please, Annabeth." He begged. "I'm sorry, just text me please to let me know you made it home okay."

"Okay, just at least a single word text." The third one said.

"Fuck, I miss you and it's been like six hours. What the hell." He said.

Annabeth sent him a I'm alive text, and didn't listen to the rest of the voicemails. Of course, she immediately got a call.

"Hi." She said bluntly.

"Annabeth." He breathed, a mixture of relief and loneliness in his voice. "I thought you were… are you okay?" He asked.

"Percy, I was asleep like every other New Yorker." She said, rolling her eyes.

"I know, I was just worried." He said.

"Don't be. I can take care of myself." She snapped, then sighed, her bad mood projected onto him. "Sorry. That was mean."

Percy chuckled. "It's okay, I kind of deserve it."

Annabeth snorted. "Yes, you do."

It was quiet for a second, and then, "Can I see you?" He asked. "Rachel took Grace to a movie."

Annabeth paused. "I-I don't know."

"Okay." Percy rushed to speak. "That's okay, I mean when you're ready, I'm not pressuring."

Annabeth tried not to laugh because he was so worried, but his rambling was making it hard. "Percy, it's not you. My parents, actually, are coming to town next weekend."

"That's in… a week." Percy stuttered.

Annabeth laughed, louder this time. "I know, I'm just kind of a control freak when it comes to them. Like, making a hour to hour schedule of what we're doing."

Percy made a gagging sound. "Annabeth." He stated.

Annabeth rolled her eyes on the other side of the phone. "What?" She asked.

"You need to go with the flow!" He said, his fingers tapping on some sort of surface on the other end.

"Percy, I haven't ever gone with the flow." She said. "I hate it."

"Well, then let me help." He said. "I'll take your parents on the best New York day of their life."

Annabeth chuckled. "Percy, what would I tell them. Hey, this is my married friend, we fuck sometimes, argue a lot and oh yeah, I work for him too."

Percy paused. "Yeah, that wouldn't work." He said sullenly.

Annabeth laughed softly. "You wanna come over?" She asked, suddenly in more of a social mood. "We can order pizza or something."

"Yes!" Percy said, then realizing he sounded way to excited. "I mean, yeah, that sounds cool." He said, and Annabeth burst out laughing again, shaking her head.

"Alright, weirdo. See you soon." She said, not waiting for a response before she hung up.

Thirty minutes later, Percy showed up in joggers with a large pepperoni pizza in hand. "I just decided to bring the pizza to you." He said smiling.

Annabeth gave him an equally big smile back, stuffed the box in her fridge, then pulled his lips to hers.

Twenty minutes later, she rolled off him, breathing deep. They lay in silence for a few seconds before he spoke.

"Is it okay if I shower here?" He asked, turning to look at her on the bed.

Annabeth nodded. "I'll warm up the pizza." She said, rolling out of bed and slipping his t-shirt on over her head. She turned on some R&B music and pulled out a plate to put the now cold pizza on. Her dad was facetiming her, which was slightly weird, but she answered anyway, standing the phone up on the counter so she could see him.

"Hey, Dad, what's up?" She asked.

He smiled and waved at her, the screen breaking up slightly. "I didn't know you could do this! The boys showed me how." He said, Annabeth assuming he was talking about facetime.

Annabeth laughed. Her dad and her had a lot of issues, but he was still her dad. "So, was there a reason for this call, or…?" She trailed off, setting the microwave for two minutes. The shower water was running now, and she could only hope her dad couldn't hear that far.

"Yeah, I just wanted to make sure you were okay with us coming. It was soon, and I shouldn't have pushed it on you like that, so if you only want to dinner or something, that's fine too." He said, smiling.

Annabeth shook her head. "No, of course not. I barely see you guys, so I can handle a weekend. Besides, I-" She was about to say something sweet, like she missed them because her dad was making an effort right now, but then the bathroom door opened.

"Hey, A, do you have-" Percy stood there, dripping wet, a loose towel around his waist, his abs completely on display for her dad. "Oh, shit." He said, then turned and disappeared back into the bathroom.

Annabeth gaped after him, her face completely red and burning up. "Uh… that's not… we're friends." She finished, turning back to her dad who was just as red as she was, maybe more.

"Right…" Her dad drawled, seemingly unable to form words.

Percy came out again, this time fully clothed and a towel rubbing his head. "Sorry, sir, that wasn't how I wanted to meet." Annabeth stared at him as he waved to her dad in the screen. "I'm Percy Jackson, Annabeth's boyfriend."

Annabeth just about screamed, died, fainted, all of the above. Was he crazy? They were so far from boyfriend and girlfriend, they were barely friends!

"Oh! I didn't know Annabeth had a boyfriend." Her dad said, the redness dissipating slightly. "Well, I have to run, hopefully we'll see you this weekend?"

"Oh, definitely." Percy said. "Nice to meet you."

Annabeth tried to lift her hand to wave goodbye, but she was pretty sure she didn't. As soon as her dad was gone, she glared daggers at Percy.

"What?" He asked innocently. "I saved you from embarrassment."

"Percy." She hissed as he took a piece of pizza out of the microwave. "You cannot come meet my family this weekend."

He shrugged. "Why not?"

"Because, I didn't even bring my high school boyfriend of two years home more than twice. Prom." She said, crossing her arms and shaking her head when he offered her a slice.

"Well," He said. "I bet you're high school boyfriend didn't do this." He said, leaning down to kiss her neck. "Or kiss you like this." He said, kissing her for a second.

Annabeth pushed him away. "What are you going to tell Rachel and Grace?" She asked.

"I don't know, I'll tell them I have a work trip or something. I'll just stay here." He said. "Are you sure you don't want pizza?"

Annabeth glared at him some more. "Who said you could stay at my apartment?"

Percy kissed her head. "Do you want me to go?"

Annabeth didn't respond, so he apparently took that as a yes. He grabbed his coat, heading for the door. "Bye, Annabeth." He said, grinning at her.

Annabeth stared at him. "You're not staying here this weekend."

a/n: Hey guys, hope you had a good weekend! This chapter is long, so enjoyy :)

Review!

-a


	12. Family

Chapter 12

Percy

Six days later, he was hauling a suitcase into Annabeth's building. He had asked once more, the next day, and she had rejected him again. Then she had called him, only to tell him to shut up about it again. Then, six hours later at two am - he had a hard time explaining that one to Rachel - she called again, slightly drunk, saying it was the only way, and ending it with a cute giggle and I'd like to have a weekend.

 **Door's open! I'm out running an errand, I'll be back in like an hour.** She texted as he checked in with the doorman. He knew what she meant. It was a little past four, which meant Rachel would be home at five to relieve her of Grace. His heart panged. He didn't regret his decisions. He wasn't happy with himself, that he was hurting Rachel, and especially Grace. But he was happy. He felt alive, for the first time since he got married. For the first time since he entered this relationship with Rachel.

Her apartment was cute. It was humbling to Percy, and standing there alone in the apartment that you could see everything in with one gaze, a life with Annabeth flashed before his eyes.

Two cute kids, a modest but nice apartment in a nice neighborhood. A car, possibly a luxury SUV, but nothing like the crazy thing he had now. They had money, but they didn't flaunt it like he and Rachel did now. They went to bed happy, fulfilled.

Percy shook his head. That wasn't happening. Ever. He needed to get those thoughts out of his brain, or he was going to get himself in trouble.

He set his suitcase down by the bed, and wandered around her studio, familiarizing himself. It was minimal, with gray accents. She had a few pictures of friends, mostly on her nightstand. There was one with Piper, a girl she had named as Hazel and Thalia, a candid picture of the four of them laughing in Central Park. There was another of just her and Piper, smiling with drinks in their hand at a bar. In her kitchen, there was a picture of her and two little kids, probably her brothers. Then, there was the little slip of paper, sticking out from the drawer in her nightstand.

Percy knew he shouldn't pry. He had only been over here a few times, and they weren't even that close. They barely had time to talk to each other about anything other than what they wanted to order for their late night snack. But he opened the drawer anyways. It was full of normal things. A book, condoms, a candle, headphones, a package of birth control pills, and a few slips of paper.

One was nothing weird, just a picture of Annabeth in someplace tropical. She looked maybe fifteen or sixteen, but there was no light in her eyes as cheesy as it sounds. Then there was one of her and a blonde guy, blowing out the candles at some dessert place in San Francisco, he assumed. Her blonde hair was shining, and she looked maybe eighteen, her senior year. Then there was a third picture, and when he turned it over somebody had shoved a push pin into the blonde guy's body. Percy laughed out loud while he looked at the picture of the two of them kissing with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

"You shouldn't be looking at that." Annabeth said softly from behind him.

Percy jumped, grinning sheepishly. "You scared me." He said, but Annabeth wasn't looking at him. Her eyes darkened as she looked at the guy in the picture. "Who is that?" He asked.

"An old boyfriend." She said quietly, her eyes stormy. "A dick." She said.

Percy put the picture back in the nightstand and closed it, turning around and putting his arms around her. Her eyes, glassy, looked up at him. "What happened?" He asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "Long story. My parents are going to be here soon, we should go. You brought the least flashy car, right?" She asked, grabbing her purse.

"Yes, I brought the Audi." Percy reassured her.

Annabeth threw him a look as she locked up. "Not exactly unflashy, but okay." She said.

It was the first time they were in a car, just the two of them, and it was slightly awkward. They were in a good place now, maybe even slightly too good, but Annabeth sat frigid in the passenger seat like she was afraid to touch anything.

"Hey." He said, reaching over and grabbing her hand. He thought she might pull away, but she didn't. "You okay? I know you haven't seen your parents in a while, and-"

"That's not why I'm… tense, Percy." She said, choosing her words carefully.

He wasn't an idiot. She was tense because she was sitting in his wife's seat, in a car that was bought with his wife's money. Rachel's perfume was sunken into the leather, and Annabeth's posture was so tight you would've thought somebody had told her she was going to die if she moved.

"Let's just get through this weekend, okay?" She asked, squeezing his hand and sighing.

Percy nodded, following the traffic director towards Terminal 4. He put the car in park, as Annabeth searched for her parents. "So," She started, craning her neck to get a better look. "We met at Columbia when I was a senior and you were in your last year of your MBA. We've been together two years, and it is serious, because my parents would kill me if they knew you were in my room like that and it wasn't serious, and no we don't have plans to get married and-"

"Annabeth." He said, kissing her temple. "All good. I remember."

She nodded, heaving another deep sigh. "Right there." She pointed. A family of four stood, looking around. Her dad was in his fifty's, attractive for an older man. He had blonde hair that was going slightly gray, and wore a University of San Francisco sweatshirt. His two twins were an exact copy of him, just 16. Her stepmom was pretty too, in a mom sort of way. She had pin straight black hair, and eyeliner that accentuated her Asian eyes.

Annabeth opened the door, waving. Her dad came over first, and gave her a big hug, followed by her two brothers, both around seventeen or eighteen, who looked at her as if she was a ghost.

"You're like, old." One of them said. Percy couldn't tell them apart.

Annabeth just laughed. "Yeah, well, that's what happens when you become an adult. You get wrinkles." Percy smiled, and went over to introduce himself.

"Mr. Chase." He said, shaking the man's hand.

"Please," He said. "Call me Frederick. This is my wife, Susan." He said, and Percy shook her hand, making note of the fact that Annabeth and her didn't hug.

"Let's go." Annabeth said. "The boys will have to sit in the third row, but it's a short drive." She said.

Percy helped her dad load the trunk with their luggage as Annabeth and her stepmom put down the seats for the boy's.

"So, Percy, what do you do for work?" Her dad asked, obviously taking note of the car.

"Um, I'm CEO of Jackson Global." He said, slightly awkwardly. They hadn't talked about what lie they were going to tell about that, so he decided to go with the truth. Hopefully the Chase's didn't look him up and see that he was married with a kid.

"And you two met…" Her stepmom trailed off.

"At school." Annabeth answered, and he could feel her glare on him. She obviously wasn't satisfied with his truthful answer. "He was in his last year of grad school while I was a senior. We had a class together."

"It's been two years, and we've never heard of him?" Frederick teased, and Annabeth blushed.

"It just got serious." She said.

"Uh-huh." One of her brother's spoke up. "It only got serious because Dad saw him coming out of your shower."

Annabeth blushed harder. "Boys." Their mom chastised. "You weren't supposed to hear that conversation."

"You're supposed to wait until you're married." The other one said, and Susan turned in her seat to give them a look.

Annabeth looked completely mortified, but she shared an amused glance with Percy. "Oh, yeah, like you guys did that." She threw back, glaring at them from the front seat. They both turned red immediately, and shut up.

"Anyways," Annabeth said, turning the music down. "I made reservations for us at Gramercy Tavern tonight." She said. "So I hope you brought some nice clothes." Percy shot her a look because she was being short, but she didn't notice him.

"We'll be okay." Susan reassured her, obviously used to Annabeth's snappy attitude. It was something Percy found attractive and honestly a turn on about her, but he could see how it got on other people's nerves.

They arrived at the Westin ten minutes later, and Percy wondered why Annabeth hadn't mentioned that her family had money. After unloading the car, and telling them the address of Gramercy, Annabeth let out a noticeable sigh once they were alone.

"Your family is well off." He stated, turning right on 2nd Ave to go downtown.

Annabeth picked at her manicured nails. "Yeah, they do fine." She paused. "My birth mom, she died in childbirth. My dad, instead of paying attention to me, turned to work. He hired a nanny, and made millions. Then he married Susan, and they had perfect twins, and…" Her words were rushing out now, and she had gone to biting her nails.

Percy took her hand away from her mouth. "Hey, it's okay."

Annabeth shook her head. "I just… whatever happens between us and Rachel, I don't want Grace to ever feel like that, you know? I think that's my biggest fear, that she's the one that gets the most hurt by this."

Percy didn't respond, because honestly that was his biggest fear too and he didn't know how to console Annabeth about it. They didn't talk the rest of the way to her studio, and when they got there Annabeth went straight into the bathroom to shower, and didn't invite Percy like usual. He flopped down on the bed, and closed his eyes, slipping into nothing.

-0-

When he woke up, Annabeth was curled into his side, softly snoring. He smiled, stroking her fresh lemon smelling hair, when he suddenly realized it was dark outside.

"Shit." He said, shooting out of bed. It was a little past 6:00, and he let out a breath. They could get ready in fifteen minutes. Annabeth lazily sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"What's wrong?" She asked, staring at him through sleep hazed eyes.

"We gotta go." He said, taking off his jeans and slipping into suit pants. "It's past 6."

Her eyes widened. "Oh, shit." She said, rifling through her closet. "Blue or maroon?" She asked.

"Maroon." He responded, and she pulled out a slinky wine colored slip dress, and a white cashmere coat.

Percy hung up a few pieces of his clothing once he was done getting dressed, and grabbed the keys while Annabeth applied a few coats of mascara.

"The subway." She said, grabbing his hand. "No time for a car on a Friday." He obliged, and she was about to shut the door when she noticed his suitcase. "Wait, move your suitcase." She said, and he stuffed it under the bed.

"Okay, let's go." He said. They walked out into the cold New York night. It had been feeling more and more like winter, and the wind whipped through their hair. The Q train luckily came quick, and they were on their way uptown. Luckily, other people were dressed up on the train since it was Friday, so they didn't look too out of place.

They were five minutes late, but Annabeth's family was already seated.

"Do you think if I ordered alcohol, they would say anything?" One of the twins said as they walked up.

"Matthew." His mom chastised. "No."

"Matthew has the slightly longer hair." Annabeth whispered to Percy, and he glanced at the two of them, hoping he didn't fuck it up.

"Hi, sorry we're late." Annabeth said, sitting down as Percy pushed her chair in for her.

"No worries, we just got here." Her dad said.

The waiter came over, and Percy slipped him his card. "We'll also take a bottle of the Chavy-Martin to start, please." Percy told him.

"It's fixed, here." Annabeth said. "Also, our treat, so don't worry about it." She said, placing the cloth napkin on her lap.

"Annabeth-" Her dad protested.

"Sir, seriously. Don't worry." Percy reassured him.

Her dad still looked concerned, but he dropped it. "So, you two live together?" He asked.

"Yeah," Annabeth spoke up. It was probably a good thing, too because Percy would most likely fuck things up if he talked. "We live in that studio I've had for a while. We've thought about moving, but…" She shrugged.

"It fits us, there's no reason to upgrade just because of my job." Percy said, then continued with a smirk. "We'll upgrade when there's a reason too."

Annabeth kicked him. "Don't listen to him." She said.

Her brothers were laughing. "I like you." One of them said - Bobby. Percy grinned, taking Annabeth's hand under the table.

The chardonnay came, and the four of them plus the two kids with their mocktail toasted to family. The six of them all together made Percy want to introduce Annabeth to his mom and stepdad and seven year old sister, Estelle, but he pushed the thought out of his head. This was out of need. Annabeth didn't want to meet his family. Heck, she barely wanted to hold his hand under this table - he could tell because he knew her almost too well now. Her posture was slightly tense, just enough so he could notice, and she was turned away from him.

The rest of dinner continued smoothly, her parents raving over the food. Even Annabeth, who at first had been slightly resentful to the idea of a weekend with her parents, had loosened up. That was probably more due to the wine though.

After dinner, her parents reluctantly let her brothers travel back to the hotel on their own by subway after Annabeth had reassured them multiple times that it was Friday and there was nothing dangerous about the subway at 10 PM in Manhattan. Her brothers were ecstatic to be let loose on their own, but less so after they were forced to share their location with their parents.

"This goes off." Matthew said when they walked them to the station. "As soon as you get back to the hotel, right?" He asked.

Susan just rolled her eyes. "Yes. Please don't order too much room service. And if I find out you got into the mini bar, you will be grounded for a long period of time."

They waved her off, disappearing underground. Annabeth laughed. "They're definitely teenagers." She commented.

"Yeah, they've basically decided they don't need parents anymore." Frederick said, chuckling. They walked the short distance to The Campbell, one of the bars that Annabeth and him frequented, and he and Rachel never did so nobody could recognize them in the wrong way.

Annabeth's parents were nice people, and he was surprised at how well they all got along. After Annabeth's descriptions of them, he wouldn't have been surprised if they had devil horns on their head.

She was tense though, despite the wine they had consumed that night, and he found himself constantly reassuring her. Touching her on her thigh, rubbing circles on her hand. Or, maybe he was reassuring himself.

Two drinks later, they had made plans to meet at Annabeth's at ten tomorrow morning. Percy and Annabeth decided to walk to the station instead of taking two trains, and they swung their hands on the almost empty street. She leaned into him, the weight of her blonde curls resting on his shoulder.

"Thank you." She murmured, her small voice almost getting carried away in the wind that had taken up outside.

"For what?" He asked, kissing her head.

"I don't know, being here. I just…" She shook her head. "I'm sorry."

Percy stopped them, pulling her off to the side. "Don't say that." He said, shaking his head. "Don't say that, Annabeth."

She looked up at him, her eyes filled with… loneliness. Regret? Definitely regret, and Percy suddenly felt sick. "Percy, I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"What are you… no, Annabeth, don't do this." He pleaded, his voice cracking.

She kissed him, softly. "I'm not. Not right now, I just… I just need some space after this weekend." She said, taking his hand again and trying to pull him along the sidewalk. "Come on, let's go home." She said again, and Percy reluctantly unstuck his feet from the sidewalk, the girl next to him feeling like a ghost, their hands intertwined the only thing connecting them at this point.

That night, in her small full sized bed with the torn sheet and fuzzy blanket, they made love. Slow and languid, and he thought he might have seen Annabeth shed a tear, but he decided to ignore it. Afterwards, Percy understood why she needed space. She was consuming him, and with everyday that passed, the fact that he had to return back to his Upper East Side penthouse with his wife and daughter was harder and harder to fathom.

a/n: helloooo it's friday! an update and the weekend, what could be better. also, less than ten days until I get to go home for the first time since I moved to nyc and I am so excited to sleep in my own bed. Roommates are not a good time. Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter is huge, so I will see you all Tuesday.

Review!  
-a


	13. Drowning

Chapter 13

Annabeth

She and Percy woke with the sun that next morning since she had forgotten to close the curtains before she went to bed last night. She was curled into him, their naked bodies touching and she stayed like that for a few seconds, wanting to savor the moment.

He was softly snoring next to her, and she decided to let him sleep since she took longer than him to get ready. The shower took years to warm up since it was so cold out now, and Annabeth stood in the small square, shivering as the water hit her in cold drops.

She didn't know what to do. They were too close. Physically, emotionally. She knew if she took one step further in this relationship, or whatever it was, she wouldn't be able to get out. She would die with the thought of Percy on her mind, her next relationship failed because of him, and the one after that. She was - no, she wasn't. She was never going to think that dreaded L word again. And how could she think that about Percy. They didn't talk much. They didn't go on dates. All they did was get drunk together and fuck. That wasn't love, and if Annabeth's brain thought it was than she was more messed up than she thought.

In reality, though, what did she want? Did she want him to leave Rachel? She certainly couldn't ask that of him. It would be selfish and rude. Did she want a real chance with him?

More than anything though, this whole pretending thing was suffocating her. These past couple months she had been trying so hard to push the idea of a real life with him out of her head. It had been creeping slowly into her mind, especially these past couple weeks, and now it was just there, glaring her in the face.

The bathroom door opened slowly, and Annabeth pulled the curtain back to invite him in. They didn't talk until they were done, just whimpers and moans ringing through the crisp morning air. The water turned hot, and it burned but Annabeth didn't bother to change it.

She got out before him so he could wash his hair, and she made a cup of coffee with her Keurig. "My parents are going to be here in ten minutes." She said when she heard the bathroom door open.

"I know." He said. They were walking on eggshells around each other, and Annabeth bit her lip to keep the tear from escaping.

They got ready in silence, Annabeth making his coffee the way he liked it, Percy placing the pods in the garbage, the two of them grabbing one end of the covers to make the bed. They were a well oiled machine when it came to these pedestrian things. They would be good together.

It's that thought that makes Annabeth blurt out something she'll always regret. They were two seconds from opening the door to greet her parents. "I want you to make a choice." She says, then bites her tongue so hard it bleeds.

Percy just stares at her, his mouth opening and closing until her parents knock. "We'll talk later." He manages to get out before Annabeth opens the door for them.

Her parents are in a good mood, and they take them to bagels and the Highline. The whole time, Annabeth feels as if she's walking in a trance. She feels like she doesn't even know the guy next to her, yet she's gripping his hand as if he's her lifeline.

"So, we'll see you guys for dinner tonight?" Her stepmom asks as she and Percy help them get back to the hotel.

"Yeah, definitely." Annabeth says with the warmest smile she can muster at the moment. "Do you want us to meet you at the hotel, or can you get to the restaurant?" She asked.

Her dad laughed. "We can take an Uber."

Annabeth smiled. "Sounds good. See you soon." She said as they went their separate ways.

Back at the apartment, Annabeth tried to busy herself with other activities, but her apartment was clean, her school work was done, and the only thing left to do was face Percy who was waiting patiently at the door for her to look at him.

"I think we should talk." He said finally, when it was clear she was not going to start this conversation.

"Percy, can't you just ignore it. I didn't mean… I'm not asking you to make a decision." She sighed, pushing herself up on the kitchen counter, her legs dangling. He came to stand in front of her, brushing the stray curl out of her eye.

"Do you want me to though?" He asked softly, his eyes dark.

"I…" She trailed off, trying to compose the hundreds of thoughts that were swimming in her mind. "I don't think it's fair of me to ask that of you." She said, unable to come up with a better answer.

He nodded, and opened his mouth to say something, but Annabeth shushed him with her lips. He responded, fast, and soon they drowned themselves in this feeling. Sex could be anything. It could be lust, love, need. Sex didn't need to be defined, and Annabeth was grateful for that. Otherwise, she might have to admit to herself that she was drowning in him.

That night at dinner, her family pressed them.

"How long have you two been together?" Her dad asked.

"2 years." Annabeth answered, hoping to cut this conversation short. Who knew what was going to come out of Percy's mouth. She could only hope he was to absorbed in his steak to say anything stupid.

"So it's… serious." Her stepmom asked.

Percy nodded. "Yeah, it is. We're happy." He said, and Annabeth tried to smile and play the part of a girl in love, but it wasn't working. She felt so distant from him, so unhappy at the moment, she was sure her parents could tell.

"What are your plans for the future?" Her dad finally asked, and Annabeth almost spewed red wine all over the table.

"We're not in any rush." Percy said smoothly, rubbing soothing circles in her palm. "I mean, Annabeth's not even out of grad school yet."

That sentence shouldn't have made her angry. It was a fact, but it just felt so degrading. She felt second class. Like his toy, or something. A whore.

Suddenly, her eyes were blurry, and she was stumbling over her chair as fast as she could, trying to excuse herself but she was pretty sure words didn't come out.

There was another girl in the bathroom, a pretty brunette, but Annabeth didn't pay much attention to her. Her body racked with sobs, and pretty soon she couldn't even see her own reflection in the mirror. The girl, who Annabeth didn't know, offered her a tissue and a comforting arm.

Once Annabeth had stopped crying - or had no tears left - the girl spoke. "A boy?" She asked, and Annabeth resisted the urge to get her silk dress any grosser than it already was. "You wanna talk about it?" She asked. "I'm Silena, by the way."

Annabeth sniffled, letting Silena guide her to the velvet chairs in the lounge area. "I, um, I'm okay. You're probably busy and I don't want to intrude."

Silena shook her head. "No, no, actually you'd give me an excuse not to have to go back to my table. My boyfriend wanted to introduce me to his new friends, who are all very nice, they're just on the topic of football right now."

Annabeth laughed, throwing away the tissue. "Well, boys suck." She said.

Silena cracked a grin. "Sometimes. You want to tell me your issue? Could help, to talk to a stranger."

Annabeth contemplated that. She would never see this girl again. She could tell her the truth, the whole story. "I… I have this boyfriend, thing, I don't know." Silena nodded, signaling that she go on. "He, um, he's married. Unhappily, but married still, and I just… I don't know how to go on, you know? I mean, I think I might be in love, and…" Her eyes widened, surprising herself with what she just said.

Silena wrapped her arms around her again, and Annabeth allowed herself to be comforted by this stranger.

Annabeth started talking again, unable to stop the words from coming out of her mouth. "He makes me happy, and I think we could have this great future together, but then there's his daughter, and his wife, but I - he's everything I've ever wanted and I can't imagine my life without him now, and I-" She stopped, tears starting to spill down her cheeks. "I don't know what to do." She said quietly.

"Well," Silena said. "I'm no boy expert, since I've been with the same guy since junior year of high school, but I think you should tell him exactly what you just told me. The truth is always the best thing to say."

Annabeth snorted. "If I could be stable and sane enough to have a relationship since high school, I'd think I was living a dream."

Silena laughed. "I just found my soulmate early." She said.

Annabeth envied her. She was in love. She wasn't going to have to worry about this stuff anymore, for the rest of her life. She was loved.

Annabeth resisted the urge to cry again. "I should go, we're at dinner with my parents."

Silena laughed. "Do I even want to know how that happened?" She asked.

Annabeth smiled. "No, probably not. Thank you, though. I'm sorry about your dress." Annabeth said, wincing at the mascara stains on the skinny strap.

Silena waved it off. "Don't worry about it. I have thirty of these at home." She reached into her purse, a Chanel bag, and pulled out a business card. "Call me if you ever need advice again." She said, standing up and strutting out of the bathroom in four inch stiletto's.

Annabeth stared down at the card. _VP of Venus_ the card said, and Annabeth's eyes widened. Venus, the world's biggest designer. She had just cried on the shoulder of a billionaire.

Annabeth wiped her eyes and walked back out to dinner where she endured the concerned eyes of Percy and the endless small talk they had to make until the bill finally came. Her thoughts were stewing, and she was getting more and more irritated by the minute. As soon as her parents were loaded into a cab, she stopped them in the middle of the sidewalk. It was starting to rain but Annabeth could barely feel the drops.

"Annabeth, can't we just go inside first?" He pleaded, but she shook her head firmly.

"This isn't going to take long." She said. "Look, this has all been… fun." She said, for lack of better word. "But you and I both know you're not leaving Rachel. And that's fine. If you did want to leave Rachel, you probably wouldn't be the kind of guy I want to be around. That's not why I started this in the first place." She took a deep breath, placing a finger on his lips when he opened his mouth to shush him, because she wasn't done. "But, Percy, I deserve better. I want to go out on dates, and I want to wake up in the morning next to you, and I want to be the girl you can't stop thinking about. I'm not, and it's fine, but I deserve that. I deserve to be that girl." She said, tears escaping out of the corner of her eye's involuntarily.

Annabeth watched his face contort into pain, but she couldn't stick around to hear his answer. She kissed him on the cheek, lightly. "I'll see you around." She said, heels clicking on the now slippery street, her hair a tangled frizzy mess in the rain.

-0-

It was Sunday night, officially ten minutes after she quit her nannying job. She felt horrible for Grace, but there wasn't really another option. There was no way she could see him everyday and be able to move on.

Her parents had left. She had spent Sunday with them, and they luckily didn't press or ask where Percy was. She gave a bullshit excuse, something about how he had a work emergency.

Rachel had sounded slightly angry on the phone. Annabeth wondered if she had any inkling of an idea of what Percy and Annabeth had been doing behind her back. A part of her hoped she did. Not because she wished ill will on the other woman, but because maybe it would shock Percy into reality, to have both Rachel and Annabeth leave him.

Annabeth doubted that would happen though. They had a kid to think about. Even if Rachel did know, it's not as simple as just saying goodbye like she did on the street last night. The more Annabeth thought about it, the more she just got angry. Angry at Percy for his immaturity, angry at herself for letting this whole thing happen.

Her bed was a mess, a spread of ice cream and chinese takeout on the sheets. Annabeth realized she hadn't gotten out of bed besides to go to the bathroom since she got home earlier this afternoon. She debated on turning on Netflix and seeking deeper into her depression, or she could call her friends.

She chose the second, and ten minutes later Hazel, Piper, Thalia and Calypso had all agreed to meet her at Spin. Annabeth dragged herself out of bed, half regretting this decision because she forgot that it meant she had to put on an outfit and makeup.

There was a loud knock five minutes later, and Annabeth wrapped herself in a robe and went to answer the door.

"Hi!" Piper said, coming in and giving her a hug. "Come on," She said, pulling away. "You're going to look so good tonight."

Annabeth laughed. She hadn't told them exactly what happened, partly because she hadn't told them she was sleeping with Percy in the first place, but she had mentioned a boy and Piper probably got the idea.

They picked out a shiny silver dress with a cowl neck, and black heels. Piper helped her with her makeup, and they talked about everything but boys. It was exactly what Annabeth needed, and she was grateful to have a friend like Piper.

The other three were already there when they got there. "Fashionably late" as Piper explained with a laugh. "Hey!" She said, getting the attention of the bartender, who's eyes raked over the five of them and decided it was worth his time. Piper leaned over the counter, "We need Cosmo's immediately. My friend just went through a breakup." She said, and the bartender just nodded. Annabeth laughed and shook her head. If she didn't know Piper's bubbly personality so well, she would assume the girl had had two drinks before coming here.

After two drinks, Annabeth was nicely buzzed. They were toasting to her single life, and Annabeth was rambling on about how dumb boys are. "I mean, the only thing attractive about them is their abs." She said, signaling the bartender for another. He brought her water and a martini this time, but Annabeth didn't pay any attention to the water. "They treat you like shit." She stated, her friends laughing.

Another martini in, and thank god Hazel had decided to be mom tonight. "Wait." Annabeth said, laughing and her drink almost spilling over the top. "Where did my bag go?" She asked, looking wildly around for her expensive Kate Spade bag that she had bought when she had money.

The other girls laughed. "A, you gave it to me because you didn't want to throw up in it, remember?" Hazel said, trying to not smile too hard.

Annabeth shook her head. "Oh, right. I love you." She said, laughing with her friends. She was ordering another martini, and probably about to get denied when a guy approached her.

"Hey, Annabeth?" The guy asked. Annabeth turned, her eyes widening as she recognized the brown hair.

"Ethan?" She said, than squinted. "Why… this is my place." She said.

He laughed. "Have you been here a while?" He asked instead.

"Yes." She said, straightening up. "I don't… what are you doing here?" She asked.

"I'm here with a couple friends, we were just grabbing a beer after pizza." He explained. "I saw you, and just thought I should say hi." He said.

"I didn't call you again." She said.

"Annabeth!" Piper hissed. "Don't be mean."

Annabeth shook her head. "We hate boys." She said.

Ethan took a step back. "I'm going to guess this isn't the best time."

Hazel was trying not to laugh. "I'm sorry, she just went through a break up."

Annabeth let out a short laugh. "It's not a breakup when all we did was fuck." She snorted. "Anyways, Ethan Sheffield, I didn't call you back because I was preoccupied. Can I call you, though, tomorrow when I'm sober?" She asked.

He laughed. "Yeah, Annabeth, you can." He waved to her friends. "Nice to meet you guys." He said, before heading back to his seat.

"He's cute!" Calypso said. "Why didn't you call him back?"

Annabeth laughed. "Um, because I don't do smart things when it comes to boys."

Piper shrugged. "Very true. Shots?"

"Yes, please." Annabeth said, laughing. She placed her head on Thalia's shoulder, trying to push any thought of relationships and guys out of her mind.

a/n: okay, wow, we are here. The end of the "first half" Just a warning, there will be a 20 month time jump for the next chapter, since who wants to hear all about Annabeth and all her romance with other guys. Also, I'm so much better at writing sad scenes, so these chapters are always longer lol. Hope you all enjoyed and see you Friday!  
\- a


	14. Diamond Ring

20 Months Later

Chapter 14

Annabeth

The Empire State Building flashed in the distance as she curled deeper into Ethan's side to stay warm. They were at her favorite rooftop bar in Manhattan, 230 Fifth to celebrate her 25th birthday. All Annabeth ever thought of when she thought of being 25 was the fact that you stopped aging and started dying, but apparently her friends thought it was a reason to celebrate.

The diamond on her left ring finger flashed as she raised her cocktail to her lips. If somebody had told her two years ago this is where her life would be, Annabeth would have laughed in their faces.

The wind picked up, and even though it was July it was still a cool summer night. Also, it was a little past midnight, and this was there last stop. Her friends were more drunk than she was, but Annabeth wasn't feeling it tonight. She had complained about going out in the first place, and had wanted to just spend the night with chinese takeout, netflix, and Ethan, but he had said that was a sad way to celebrate her being alive a quarter of a century.

They sang, and Annabeth blew out the candles half-heartedly. She didn't know what to wish for. Part of her knew she had everything right here with her. Best friends, a loving fiancee who her parents approved of far more than they approved of Percy - partly because their last dinner with him had ended with her in tears, but still - a solid income, an apartment on Park Avenue. What else could she ask for?

Annabeth knew the answer to that, but she didn't let herself think it. It was too painful, brought back way too many memories. She was one of those people who pushed things to the back of her mind, never let them come out. It was unhealthy, yeah, but it was her way of coping.

Jason and Piper, who were now happily married with a baby - a _baby -_ on the way paid the bill here. Annabeth protested, but they waved it off. It was weird, how financially stable everyone was now. Piper worked in fashion, as a buyer. Jason was in finance, even Thalia had pulled it together and had opened a high end bar in the FiDi for rich Wall Street workers, also known as Annabeth.

She had graduated top of her class last spring, and had almost immediately gotten a job as a junior partner at Safford Architecture, a renowned architecture company in New York City. She was thriving, and it was the first time in her life she felt like she had a real purpose. It was everything she had ever worked for.

They were standing up to leave when she saw him. Ethan had grabbed her coat and helped her into it, kissing her neck as she smiled at him.

He made eye contact with her as he walked past with Rachel on his arm. She glowed in a purple dress, the color somehow not clashing with her pin straight auburn hair. His eyes widened, but he thought better of it and didn't point out to Rachel that their old nanny was standing right there.

Annabeth's knees shook. She could feel everybody's eyes on her, but she just stared at the back of his head as he continued smoothly on, as if she had been a bump in the road, a hiccup on his way to becoming the richest man in Manhattan.

She had expected to feel something when she saw him for the first time again. Hopelessness, maybe. Heartbreak. All she felt was anger, though. Hot, boiling anger in the pit of her stomach, and she balled her fists. She was vaguely aware of Piper taking her wrist and leading her towards the exit, but all Annabeth wanted to do was scream at him. Yell at him for ruining her life, ruining Grace's, treating her like shit, treating his wife like shit.

Yet, she was still attracted to him. She knew if she did go over to him, it would take all of her energy not to meet up with him secretly tonight, on an empty subway train, or in the cramped back seat of his Maybach.

"Who was that?" Ethan asked, as they stepped into the elevator together.

Annabeth cleared her mind, looking up at her fiance innocently. "Who was who?" She asked, then reached into her clutch, turning her gaze downwards to try and find her chapstick, hoping Ethan didn't see the tears catching in her eyes.

He just shook his head, and hailed them a cab. She felt his hand slip into hers as her phone buzzed twice, sharp. Ethan was staring out the window, so she checked it.

 **Percy: You looked absolutely stunning tonight.**

 **Percy: You're the woman I can't stop thinking about.**

Annabeth inhaled sharply, stuffing her phone deep into her clutch, the anger deep in the pit of her stomach. Who did he think he was?

That night, Ethan and her were distracted. He let it go, luckily, but she was so far from him that night she faked two orgasms. She was worried he could tell, but if he knew he didn't say anything, just wrapped his arms around her when she decided she wanted to sleep.

"I love you." He murmured against her bare shoulder. All Annabeth could do was wipe at the silent tears that went streaming down her cheeks as he spoke.

-0-

The next morning, Annabeth tried and for the most part succeeded in pushing Percy out of her mind. She was with Ethan, now. She didn't have to worry about being cheated on, she could be out in the open with him, he was in love with her.

The sun was shining, and they had the windows open. She had turned on music, and was cooking eggs and dancing around the kitchen with him, the two of them laughing and kissing and nursing their hangovers.

"I love you." She said quietly, clinging to his old t-shirt. "I love you." She said again, more to herself than him.

Ethan laughed. "I love you too, baby." He said, kissing the top of her head. "So, what are your plans that now you're twenty-five?" He asked.

Annabeth laughed. "Honeymoon planning?" She suggested, and he grinned.

"Sounds like a perfect Sunday." He said, and they brought their plates to the couch, flipping through the travel magazines their wedding planner had sent them.

"What about Malaysia?" Annabeth mused. "No, too far." She said, flipping to the next page.

Ethan dropped a piece of egg on the ground and called over their Pomeranian, Chloe. "Weird to think we won't be able to do this soon."

Annabeth laughed, not looking up from the magazine. "Ethan, the dog's three. She's not dying."

He chuckled. "I mean, eating on the couch, hanging out in our pajama's until it's time to go back to bed."

Annabeth gave him a weird look, not understanding. "We're getting married, not turning forty."

"I'm talking about kids, Annabeth." He said, setting his empty plate on the coffee table. "You do want kids, right? I mean, we had this discussion a few months ago."

"Oh." Annabeth said. "Yeah, of course." Truthfully, she had always thought she would have kids when she was thirty, thirty-five. It might have been immature, but she didn't want to give up her lifestyle. Drinks on Friday and Saturday night, chinese takeout and pizza on the weeknights, sex whenever they wanted, clean apartment, brunch on Sunday's. Whenever she thought about her life with kids, all she saw was greasy hair, bags under her eyes and her fun Friday night's turned into throw up and getting a five year old to eat veggies.

Also, there was a part of her that she would never admit out loud that wasn't committed to this relationship. When they started, she had one foot out the door. She took two weeks to say yes to his proposal. Did she really want kids with him?

Ethan kissed her head, drawing her out of her daydream. "We'll figure it out." He said.

She nodded, trying to switch the topic by suggesting Santorini, but the previous conversation was still hanging over both their heads.

-0-

It was Sunday, and Annabeth was at brunch with her friends like she was every Sunday. It was packed, and they were standing outside waiting to get in at a place in Williamsburg.

"So, Ethan brought up kids." Annabeth told them, placing her chapstick back in her bag.

"And?" Hazel prompted her.

Annabeth shrugged. "I just… I don't want to have them right now, you know? I like our thing we have going now." She said.

Piper laughed. "Wow, way to make me feel better."

Annabeth blushed. "Sorry. And I'm not saying never, I just… I don't think I'm ready right now." She said.

Thalia raised her eyebrows. "Are you ever going to be ready with Ethan?"

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at her. "What are you saying?" She asked.

Thalia shook her head. "Nothing, A. You just need to think about what marriage means a little more." She said, and Annabeth was about to snap back but the hostess called their name.

Annabeth ordered her usual earl grey with lemon, and was checking her phone instead of having to socially engage with Thalia. The breakfast table was tense, and it was really only Hazel and Piper talking.

Then, his name popped up and put her in a worse mood.

 **Percy: Can I see you? Please.**

 _Annabeth: Stop. No, you can't._

 **Rachel and I are getting a divorce.**

 _So?_ Annabeth got even more angry. Why did he think she would care?

 **Annabeth, please. Where do you work now? I'll come to you.**

 _It's none of your business. Please stop texting me, or I'll have to get a restraining order._ She knew that was drastic and probably a little petty and ridiculous, but she didn't care. He didn't respond, and and Annabeth wasn't sure how to feel about that.

-0-

"Can you make me a coffee?" She called out to Ethan as she picked out a navy blue striped business suit to wear for the day.

"Already done." He said, coming up behind her with a mug.

Annabeth smiled. "Thanks." She said, slipping out of her pajama shorts and putting on her pants.

Ethan frowned. "Let's not get dressed today."

Annabeth laughed. "Go, shower. I need to leave soon anyway."

He rolled his eyes giving her a kiss as she pulled off her t-shirt. "Have a good day. What'd you want to do for dinner?" He asked, pulling off his shirt to get in the shower.

"I'll stop at Whole Foods on the way home." Annabeth responded, slipping the matching blazer on over her silk top. "I gotta go, love you."

"Love you." He said, his voice muffled by the running water. Thirty minutes later, after a short ride on the 4, Annabeth walked into her office, heels clicking.

"Excuse me, miss?" The timid secretary spoke up as Annabeth walked by.

"Yeah, what's up Olivia?" Annabeth asked.

"The CEO of Jackson Global is here to see you." Olivia whispered like it was some kind of crazy secret. "I don't know how you got the assignment, but he says you're the architect he's working for."

Annabeth rolled her eyes, sighing. "Does he." She said, thanking Olivia and walking into her office.

"So you're stalking me now?" She asked him as soon as she got in there, slamming the dark wooden door. His back was turned, staring out at the skyline, hands stuffed in his suit pockets. Annabeth's stomach turned, and she started to have flashbacks of the last time they were in an office.

He turned, and Annabeth tried not to make eye contact. She wasn't sure if she would punch him or kiss him, but she didn't want to find out.

"I put the designs on your desk." He said instead. "Your boss, Safford - nice lady, by the way - told me you're the best of her first year's. Said you could handle this."

Annabeth gaped. "You talked to Victoria?" She asked.

"Yeah, that's who I called a few days ago about this new project. She just got back to me this morning and mentioned you." He said, shrugging, and Annabeth was seething.

"You - this - this was a coincidence?" She stuttered, hating herself for not being able to get together.

"Yeah." He said. "I didn't know you worked here until an hour ago."

"I…" She trailed off, sinking into her chair. "Percy, you need to leave." She said, pointing at the door. "Phillip, works two doors down. He's good, he can take care of you." She said firmly.

"Annabeth, don't." He pleaded and she glanced into his eyes for the first time which was a huge mistake. They were vacant, lonely, swimming with anxiety and hurt. He looked like a hurt puppy.

She sighed. "We can't work together. That's crazy."

"Then agree to lunch." He pleaded, sitting down in one of her client chairs. "Please. We'll just go to Dig Inn or something, something simple. Please."

Annabeth sighed, taking a drink from her water bottle. Before she could respond, Percy's eyes widened.

"You-" He pointed at her hand. "You're-" He tried again, but he couldn't get the words out. At first Annabeth didn't know what he was talking about, but then the diamond hit the table as she set the water bottle back down.

"I… I didn't realize. Why didn't you say something?" He asked.

Annabeth bit her lip to keep from snapping at him. "Percy, I wasn't going to call you to tell you I was getting married. What did you want me to do, invite you to the wedding?" She asked, standing up and opening the door for him. "I'm happy, okay. Just, please, let me be."

Percy nodded, grabbing his briefcase and walking over to her. He stood there for a second, staring down at her as if he had something else to say, but he decided against it. With a quick kiss on the cheek, he was on his way back down the hall.

Annabeth sighed, sinking back into her chair. She was about to try and forget about that conversation and get back to work when she saw the plans.

She picked them up gingerly, as if they were going to incinerate if she touched them too hard. _Community Center in North Harlem_ was scrawled across the top in Percy's messy handwriting, with bullet points on ideas.

Her mind flashed back to the conversations they had, at the beach, in Central Park. Took him two years, but the thought that he acted on his word made a ghost of a smile appear on Annabeth's face as she carefully tucked the pages into a manila folder and filed them away.

a/n: soooo yeah, Annabeth is with Ethan, Percy finally decided to get a divorce, and Piper and Jason are married! Crazy. I got a review asking why Percy doesn't just get a divorce and be with Annabeth, but the truth is divorce's when kids are involved are so much more messy and harder to do. If Percy did just get a divorce right away, he really would be a dick. Also, that doesn't make for good fanfiction. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed this. Like I said, there's about 10-15 chapters left, depending on how I feel, and then an epilogue so we are close!

Thank you all for your support. Review!

-a


	15. Just Friends

Chapter 15

Percy

"Fifty-fifty." Percy said, sitting at one end of the long wooden table next to his lawyer. "You're lucky I'm not arguing for more time." He said, staring at his wife (ex wife?), her green eyes sparking with anger.

"No." She said. "Sixty-forty. You get her on the weekends, I get her during the week. I'm her mother, she needs me more."

Percy scowled. "Rachel, that's seventy thirty, you're being ridiculous." He said, starting to stand up but Adam pulled him down.

"Both of you, please. Do you want to put your daughter through court instead?" Rachel's lawyer, Claudia, asked.

They silenced, and Rachel looked down, blushing. "I guess we can do fifty fifty." She said quietly. "You were home more these past couple years."

Percy nodded to his lawyer, and he and Claudia passed papers between the two of them.

"Okay." Claudia said a couple minutes later. "That's it. All that's left is to sign. You've divided your money, Grace, and your belongings. Can you guys think of anything else?" She asked.

Percy glanced at Rachel who wasn't making eye contact with him. Her eyes were glassy, and Percy felt a pang of guilt. Their divorce wasn't because of Annabeth. He had never told her about Annabeth, but Percy still felt like it was mostly his fault.

"I guess we're good." He said, trying to keep his voice from breaking. It wasn't that he didn't want this. It was what was best, for him, for Rachel, for Grace, but still. She had been his wife. He had made a commitment, and he didn't follow through.

Rachel hesitated as her pen hit the paper, but she scrawled her name and walked out without a second word to Percy. He picked up the pen, still warm from Rachel's tight grasp, and spelled out his name next to hers.

-0-

Percy had soon realized that he had no apartment to move into once his bags were packed and he was ready to call an Uber. Grace was sobbing, and he figured that it wasn't the best thing for him to start apartment searching on the sidewalk, so he arranged to stay with Jason and Piper for the weekend until he found something.

He leaned down, giving his now seven year old daughter a huge hug. "I love you. So much." He said, and he felt her head nod up and down on his soaked shoulder.

"See you Monday." She said, her voice small. Percy pulled away, nodding and wiping at a tear of his own. With a short nod to Rachel, he got into his Uber, heading downtown to the Grace's place in the West Village.

Their apartment wasn't the biggest, but they had two rooms. Of course, the second was now set up for a baby, but they had put a blow up mattress in there for Percy. He felt bad imposing on them, especially with Piper five months pregnant, but he hadn't really had anywhere else to go.

"I'll be out of here by the end of the week." Percy promised Jason.

Jason shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It'll be nice to have somebody in here that isn't hormonal."

"I heard that!" Piper called from the kitchen, and Percy and Jason laughed.

That night, as he lay on his uncomfortable mattress in the middle of a nursery, Percy suddenly wondered how he got here. He used to have it all. The American Dream. A beautiful wife, money, a penthouse on the UES, a cute daughter, friends. And now… now he was wishing he was sleeping anywhere else, even his old twin size bed as a kid would've been better.

He had the first chance of the day to think about what had happened between him and Annabeth this morning. He had gone straight from her office to his meeting with Rachel to packing up his things and coming here.

He really shouldn't have been surprised she was engaged. She was gorgeous, funny, smart, everything a sensible guy would look for. He could admit he was jealous. In his head, at least. He knew he never wanted to meet whatever guy had put a ring on her finger, or he would probably end up saying something stupid.

Percy really hadn't known she worked there. He missed her, but he wasn't crazy enough to stalk her.

Gods, letting her walk away that night was the worst mistake he had made in all 27 years of his existence.

He was ten seconds from sleep that Friday night when the door slammed in their apartment. Percy had gone to bed early, making up some excuse about how he was tired but he really just didn't want to step on Piper's and Jason's toes. They were still in the living room, watching some show.

"Hello?" A voice he knew all too well called out. She must have seen them, because she continued. "Jason, get two glasses. We're getting drunk so I have a drinking buddy while I unload my problems on Piper."

Percy wished he was dreaming. Unfortunately, Annabeth was really there, and had no idea he was on the other side of their thin wall.

"Annabeth, I don't think right now is the best time…" Jason trailed off.

"Oh." She said quietly. "Sorry, I didn't think about the fact that you guys might be… busy." She said.

"No!" Piper said. "We were just watching TV, I just… there's somebody else here." She said.

Annabeth gave a short laugh. "Did you start a home?" She asked.

Piper paused, and must have given her friend a look. "No." Piper said. "Um… how do I…"

Percy sighed, and got out of bed to save Piper from a hard conversation. "Hey." He said, trying to smooth his unruly hair down as he stepped out of their nursery.

"Oh!" Annabeth squeaked, blushing as she glanced down at his bare chest. Oops. "I'm sorry, um, what's going on here?"

"Percy finalized his divorce paper today." Piper said. "He can't move into his new apartment until Monday, though."

Annabeth was quiet for a moment, then raised her bottle of tequila. "So you need a drink too?" She asked, looking at him. "As friends." She made clear.

Percy smiled. "Yeah, I do." He said.

Annabeth grinned. "Good. Just, uh, put a shirt on first please."

Percy blushed, and went to slip on an old, ratty college t-shirt. When he came back out, the three of them were seated around Piper and Jason's small island, that barely fit four bar stools. They were laughing, and Piper had lit a candle in the middle of the table. Percy smiled, watching the three of them talk. This was the life he wanted, the life he had always wanted. Simple, intimate, filled with laughter and warmth. He could've stayed in that moment forever, but Jason spoke up.

"Dude, come sit. We're doing shots." He said. Percy laughed, taking the only available seat next to Annabeth. She instinctively shifted away from him slightly, but Percy tried not to take it personally. They weren't close anymore.

Piper clasped her cup of tea between her fingers, watching Jason pour the tequila wistfully.

"Sorry, Pipes." Annabeth said, smiling sympathetically at her best friend.

Piper laughed. "It's okay. I didn't really drink much before, but a Cosmo does sound good right now."

"The day after the baby is born we're getting drunk." Annabeth said, laughing.

Piper rolled her eyes. "Annabeth, I'll be bleeding with huge bags under my eyes in a hospital bed, but okay."

Annabeth grinned. "Such a downer." She said as she picked up her shot. "Okay, toast." She said to Percy and Jason. "To shitty things happening in our lives."

"My life is good." Jason said.

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at him. "Okay, superstar. I'll just talk to Percy." She said, laughing as she drank hers, then immediately followed up with the lemonade they had out.

Jason and Percy downed theirs, and immediately Annabeth poured more.

"Okay, slow down, please." Percy spoke up. "I'm old." He said, earning a chorus of laughs as they took another shot.

Two shots later, the three of them were pretty drunk. Piper thought they were idiots for sure by now, but she just laughed along with them. Eventually, they switched to sipping beers slowly on the ground in the living room with the fire going. Piper and Jason excused themselves to their room a little later, and left Annabeth and Percy sitting there alone. The only reason it wasn't intensely awkward was because Percy was just tipsy enough to feel confident enough to say something.

"I honestly didn't know you worked at Safford." He said.

Annabeth shrugged. "It's okay. I believe you." She responded.

They sat in silence for a few more minutes, the gas fireplace going, warming their feet. "You never talked about your problems tonight." He said. "Isn't that what you came over here for?"

Annabeth looked at him. "I didn't want to bother anybody. We were having a good time."

"Well, I'm a good listener." He said, smiling softly. "I mean, we didn't really do a lot of talking, but I am."

Annabeth chuckled quietly. "I can't really talk to you about my issues with my fiance." She said, taking another drink of her beer.

Percy didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything at all. Part of him felt bad for her. He didn't want her to be hurt, or feel bad, but another part of him was guiltily feeling happy about it.

She sighed, standing up and going to the kitchen. "Do you want another beer?" She asked.

Percy shook his head, then voiced his answer since she was in another room. "No, thanks." He said as she came back with a new drink and settled back in next to him, her eyes glowing in the dull light.

"So, it's really over between the two of you?" She asked a few minutes later.

Percy nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, it's really over." He said.

Annabeth took a drink. "How'd Grace take it?"

"She was… fine, actually, until she realized that I was moving out. Then she started sobbing. I mean, we went through the whole two rooms, two birthdays, two Christmas's thing, but still." He said, leaning his head back on the couch, his back cramping from the childlike position the two of them were in.

"Nothing changes the fact that her parents aren't living together, Percy." Annabeth said.

"I know." He said sullenly. "I wish it didn't have to happen, but it was unhealthy for all of us to keep living like that."

Annabeth was quiet, eyes glassy. For the first time since she got here, Percy realized how tired she looked. Her hair was greasy, she had bags under her eyes, and her lips were peeling like she hadn't put chapstick on in days. He saw a tear slide down her cheek as she stared blankly into the fire.

"Hey." He started. "What's wrong?" He asked, but she shook her head, pushing his arm away.

"I hate you." She said, quietly, her voice shy and broken. She tucked a curl behind her ear, then laid her head on Percy's shoulder.

Percy closed his eyes, forcing himself not to cry as he felt her tears soak his shirt. "I know. I know you do." He said, as sleep took them both over, the beer spilling on the hardwood floors.

a/n: Sorry I didn't update yesterday, I was super busy! Also this is so short so I apologize, but it's just kind of a filler chapter. Hope you all enjoyed and see you Friday!

-a


	16. Right Choice

Chapter 16

Annabeth

The next morning had been extremely awkward. She vaguely remembered her and Percy's 2AM conversation on the cold floor of Piper and Jason's apartment, but it was enough to know she said stupid things. Then, they had woken up on the floor, curled into each other. Annabeth had tried not to act disgusted, and left as soon as possible.

She dreaded the conversation she was going to have to have with Ethan. She was only two stops away, and she was planning out every possible direction the conversation could take in her head. Maybe he wouldn't be mad. What was she going to tell him? Why had she even gone to their apartment last night? Gods, she was an idiot.

Their doorman gave her a look as she walked in in last night's outfit. She had went out to a casual dinner with Thalia, who had to go back early because of work the next day. Annabeth had not been satisfied with her level of trashed, so she had gone to the Grace's to drink and talk out the fact that she was getting cold feet. Piper was always good for those conversations. She had a level head.

Then, of course Percy had to be there. She should have just left, and somehow she had ended up telling him she hated him and then cuddled up to him. How much of a screw up did you have to be to have that behavior?

The elevator dinged on the 32nd floor, and she walked the short distance to their two bedroom apartment. "Babe?" She called as she entered the apartment that she had decorated a few months ago to her taste.

"Annabeth?" Ethan called, stepping out of their room in a towel. "Oh, thank gods." He said, rushing over to her and kissing her. "Where were you? I was so worried!" He said, pulling away and grasping her face.

Annabeth scrunched up her face. "You're not mad?" She asked instead of responding to his question.

"No, of course not. I have nothing to be mad at you for, right?" He asked, giving her a look.

"No, sorry." She said, shaking her head. "I just got a little too drunk and ended up staying with Thalia last night. Sorry, I should've texted I just didn't think about it."

"It's okay." He said, giving her another kiss. "You want some coffee? I can make hangover food if you want?" He asked, getting a mug down from the cabinet.

"Bacon?" Annabeth suggested with a little smile. Ethan laughed, and nodded, getting it out of the fridge. She didn't know why she was getting cold feet. If anything, last night had made her want to marry Ethan even more. She and Percy, they were broken. Ethan was whole, he made her whole.

This was the right choice.

-0-

Annabeth usually loved work, but today was particularly boring. It was a Wednesday, and she was seriously feeling that weird middle of the week limbo. Kate, her best friend at work, had been out sick the past couple days, so the only people she had for company was the weird girl Alex who worked down the hall and Zach, the gay guy who was fun at times, but wasn't always the best when you didn't feel like talking.

She brought out the blueprints that Percy had drawn up. It was the fourth time that week that she had looked at them, subconsciously thinking of ways it could be better, what she could do with it. Then she would shake her head, try to push him out of her mind.

She knew she should pass the project off if she wasn't going to do it, but Annabeth couldn't bring herself to do it. It felt like her last connection to him, and Annabeth didn't know if she was ready to give that up quite yet.

"Hey." Zach said, knocking on her door. "Mira and I are going out for drinks, want to come?" He asked.

Annabeth checked her watch. It was five, she could probably get out of here. "Just one." She said, grabbing her coat, and shutting down her laptop.

Fifteen minutes later, they were in some dark bar with a bunch of other FiDi workers in suits and pencil skirts. Annabeth ordered her usual Cosmo, and was taking her first sip when she felt somebody tap her shoulder.

"Hey." The voice - Percy - said.

Of course, just what she needed. Annabeth swiveled on her stool to face him. "What are you doing here?" She asked as Zach and Mira carried on their own conversation.

"I'm here with a couple friends from work." He said, pointing to a table in the back where a few other guys sat in stuffy suits. "Just thought I should say hi."

Annabeth just downed her Cosmo. "Look, last night was…"

"Not happening again." He said. "I understand. I hope you… figure things out. Be happy." He said.

She smiled softly. "Thanks. You know, your blueprints are good." She said. Wow, she really shouldn't drink.

He laughed. "Thanks. I learned from studying your school blueprints."

She rolled her eyes. "Anyways, I think we should do something with them. Stupid to let a perfectly good plan go to waste since we can't be adults."

Percy nodded. "Okay. I can come by your office about ten tomorrow, if that works."

Annabeth smiled. "Perfect. I'll see you tomorrow."

He gave her one last loopy grin, and went to join his friends again.

"He's straight, I assume?" Zach asked her, grinning.

Annabeth laughed. "Unfortunately." She said, and ordered another drink.

-0-

10 AM rolled around the next day, and Annabeth had already had a rough day. She spent a half hour picking out an outfit, which was so unlike her but she figured it was the nerves of seeing Percy today. She ended up going with her powersuit, all red with pearl jewelry for accents.

Then, their keurig broke, her hair straightener wouldn't warm up, the hot water was out in their 5000 dollar a month building, and Ethan had woken up on the wrong side of the bed. In other words, if the whole project with Percy went wrong, she wouldn't have been at all surprised.

He was right on time, which wasn't abnormal. He looked exhausted, and you could literally see the lines under his eyes, darkened every time he blinked.

"Morning." He said, then yawned.

Annabeth laughed. "The air mattress treating you well?" She asked.

He rolled his eyes, sinking into a chair across from her. "No. It's horrible. I'm supposed to get the keys tomorrow though, so hopefully tonight is the last."

"Where'd you move?" Annabeth asked, taking out the blueprints.

"High rise in midtown. It's close to work, and it's just temporary." He said.

Annabeth nodded. "We should start, I have another appointment at 11." She said, and he nodded, setting down his coffee and getting out a pencil.

"So I was thinking…" He said, drawing his pencil along the paper as he talked, animatedly describing his idea. Annabeth was only half listening staring at the man in front of her. She wasn't even sure she knew this guy.

"Annabeth?" He asked, and her head snapped up to meet his eyes.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Sounds good. I'll run it through with my boss, and then I can text - email you, and let you know when we can go check out spaces for it." She said.

He grinned. "Okay, great. I'll see you later then, yeah?"

Annabeth nodded. "Yeah, see you." She said, and he left her one last smile as he shut her office door.

-0-

That weekend, Annabeth was so busy she barely had time to breathe. Her wedding was in less than two weeks now, and she had ran around Saturday cake tasting, making sure the venue was perfect, flower decorating, and meeting after meeting with their wedding planner.

Finally, she had dropped Ethan off at the apartment and had gone a little farther uptown to meet Piper and Hazel at the wedding dress place. She had already picked out her dress, but today was her last fitting so it was slightly stressful. If it wasn't right, there really wasn't another time for another adjustment.

"Hi." She said, slightly out of breath as she gave them both a hug.

"Hi!" Piper squealed. "This is so exciting!" She said, laughing. Annabeth just shot her a look, and Piper smiled sheepishly.

"Come on, Kendra's waiting." Annabeth said. She checked in, and they brought her back to the room where her now familiar white dress was shining in the corner. Everybody seemed to be more excited about it than Annabeth, including the dress that was flashing in the clear casing. Even Kendra, who was serious most of the time was glowing for Annabeth.

"Last oneeee." She sang, pulling the dress off the hanger. It was simple, white, fitted in the top and looser after it hit her waist. The sleeves were long since she was getting married inside, and the skirt hit just under her ankles. With heels, it fit perfectly.

Annabeth slipped it on, staring at herself in the mirror. Why wasn't she happier?  
She should be blushing, crying, glowing. Instead, she felt like a shell of herself. She didn't even feel like that was her looking back at herself. It was some outsider, some girl who had chosen Ethan, like Annabeth hadn't even been part of that choice. Her hands started to shake as Kendra pulled and poked, making sure there wasn't an issue.

"You look beautiful." The older woman said, but Annabeth just stood there. "Do you want to go show your friends one last time?" She asked.

Annabeth wanted to shake her head no, but she just followed Kendra out of the dressing room, not saying a word.

Her friends gasped, and Hazel told her she hadn't ever looked more beautiful. Annabeth didn't say anything, just stared at herself. She didn't even recognize herself.

"I don't…" She said quietly, trailing off.

"Is something off?" Kendra asked, fussing around her.

Annabeth just stared again, touching the fabric gingerly. "It's perfect." She said, instead of voicing her cold feet and the way she wanted to rip this dress off of her and run naked out into the middle of the Upper East Side.

"Great." Kendra said, smiling, and Piper and Hazel looked so happy for her. How could Annabeth let them down?

That night, after the fitting, she wanted to talk to Ethan about it but she wasn't sure what to say. It wasn't that she definitely didn't want to get married, she just thought it might have been moving way too fast. She was drowning in preparations. They had only been together for a couple years. They were barely twenty five. It was too much.

On Monday, Percy came back and they took the subway uptown to go look at possible land for their community center. Annabeth was quiet, and she knew he could tell something was wrong. He always covered up awkwardness with humor, and today he was making one too many jokes.

"Stop." Annabeth snapped at him after he kept talking and she wasn't responding. "This is work. We don't have to talk." She said.

"Okay." He said quietly. "Are you okay?" He asked.

Annabeth groaned, throwing her head back. "Did you not get the hint I don't want to talk?" She asked.

He nodded slowly. "Okay, well when you're ready." He said.

She tried to ignore him, but the thoughts were ready to spill out of her head, and really, he was the only person she could talk too. "I'm just overwhelmed, okay? My wedding, it's in less than two weeks now. I just… work is really my only escape, so just please try to be a little less annoying." She said.

"Shouldn't you be excited for your wedding?" Percy asked, scrunching up his eyebrows in that way that Annabeth thought was absolutely adorable. She looked away, resisting the urge to just laugh and kiss him like she used too.

"I'm just tired." She said quietly, shutting down the conversation. Afterwards, Percy asked if she wanted to get dinner since it was the end of the work day, and she promptly shut him down.

She didn't know how to feel about him now. Sure, he was still Percy. Funny, hot, kind, smart (in some ways), but then there was the side of him that she wasn't so sure about. She couldn't trust him. He had lied to his wife, lied to her, lied to his daughter. Cheaters were usually serial cheaters. All she knew was that she wasn't going to get involved with him again, no matter what happened with Ethan.

a/n: Helloo, it's Friday! Crazy stuff happening, so I hope you all are enjoying the story.

Also, I'm starting to write my next fanfiction since I'm almost finished with this one (!) I have a few summaries and I would love if you guys could give your opinions and help me decide!

Option 1: _Nine Lives_ : Percy Jackson has had one name in his head ever since he could remember: Annabeth Chase. He's never met her before, at least in this life, but he _knows_ her. One chance meeting on the streets of New York City brings the two of them together after their eight previous lives have touched.

Option 2: _The Tipping Point:_ 2118\. One century after the Tipping Point. 12 years after the Flood. 10 years after the Separation. Annabeth Chase, the wealthy daughter of the architect of New York, starts her senior year of high school with three new scholarship students wreaking the glittering hallways of South High. As the two worlds clash, Annabeth finds an unlikely ally in a boy that can barely afford to put food on the table while secrets are uncovered about the real reason for the Separation.

Option 3: _Something About You:_ Annabeth Chase is a successful CEO of an architecture company in downtown Manhattan. Her life consists of working from 9 to 9, ordering Chinese takeout, and occasionally seeing her two friends that she managed to keep after her schedule became unbearable. At thirty, she's content to spend her life alone, with work as her only companion until she starts a collab with the CEO of Jackson Global.

Let me know! I plan on doing all three at some point, it's just a matter of when. Thank you all for your support :)

-a


	17. Old Nanny

Chapter 17

Percy

The news that Annabeth was going to be married next weekend hit him harder than it should. They weren't together. She wasn't his, and she never would be. He hadn't let the thought cross his mind until now, and it was eating him alive.

He had moved into his new apartment. It was bland, and he instantly missed having a woman in his life to decorate. He realized he had never even bought his own furniture, and he definitely preferred it that way. Who cared if the couch was white or tan, but he realized that it did make a difference once you brought everything in there.

So, there he sat in his mismatched apartment, staring out the window at the bustling streets of midtown. Even at 9:00, people were still running around in blazers and ties, heels and suits. Grace was over this weekend and the next week, and she was running around putting her dolls up so they could be with her at all times. Percy made a mental note to take them down after she went to bed, since they were creepy. His parents were coming over for dinner tonight, and he had thought about cooking but decided to just order chinese takeout instead. If he could do that with anyone, it was his mom.

There was a sharp knock, and he answered the door giving his mom and Paul hugs.

"Grandma!" Grace squealed, hugging his mom and grabbing two cookies.

"Um, just one, Grace." Percy said. She pouted, but set the cookie on the counter and went to grab the present she had made for Sally.

"It's…" His mom trailed off, laughing while she glanced around the apartment. "I'll bring a plant next time instead of cookies." She said, grinning and kissing his cheek.

"No!" Percy said, chuckling. "I like cookies." He said, exchanging a glance with Paul.

"So," His mom said, grabbing a spring roll. "How is everything since the… move?" She asked, choosing her words carefully.

Percy shrugged. "It's fine." He said. "Grace is… better. She seems slightly unphased, but we're still going to keep doing therapy for a couple months."

His mom nodded as Grace came running back. "Grandma!" She said again. "I have a present."

"Really?" His mom asked, helping her into the dinner chair. "What is it?"

"A drawing." She said. "It's you and me and Daddy and Grandpa. It's for you."

Sally kissed her head. "I love it, thank you." She said, smiling at Percy. "Do you want a potsticker?"

Grace nodded and placed her napkin on her lap like they had been practicing. They passed the food around, Grace keeping the conversation light and easy. It was always easier with her there, but he knew his parents would stick around after she was asleep.

"Okay, Gracie." He said at 8:30. It was a Wednesday, and she had school in the morning. "Go brush your teeth, please." He said. She didn't complain, which was slightly abnormal, but the whole day had been exhausting for her since she had gymnastics after school.

"Are you sure you're okay?" His mom asked once Grace was behind closed doors. "I mean, it's hard to raise a kid on your own." She said, giving him a worried look.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Mom, I'm fine. Besides, I'm not on my own, she's only here every other week."

Sally nodded, and was about to say something else when Grace came back out in her pajamas with a story and asked her to read it for her. His mom nodded and smiled, and they went back to Grace's room.

Percy grabbed a beer for him and Paul, and the two settled in on the couch. Paul wasn't his real dad, but he might as well have been. He had known him for over ten years by now, and it wasn't like he was close with his real dad.

"So what happened between you two?" Paul asked.

Percy didn't respond for a second, propping his feet up on the coffee table, staring at the gas fireplace. "It just… work. Money. Parenting." He said. "I don't know, the usual. We just grew apart."

Paul nodded, sipping his beer. "Well, I… I'm sorry." He said. "Nobody should have to go through this."

Percy shrugged. "Honestly, I'm glad it happened. She wasn't, we weren't right for each other."

The two guys were silent when there was a sharp knock at the door. Paul looked at him, but Percy just shrugged. He had no idea who was at his door. It was almost ten now, and he wasn't expecting any visitors.

The person knocked again, and Percy hauled himself up to answer the door. "One minute." He called.

Annabeth stood on the other side, a bottle of wine in one hand and her purse in the other. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot, like she hadn't slept or had been drinking. "Hi." She said, then smiled. Yeah, definitely drunk. "Are you busy?" She asked.

He should have turned her away. She was drunk, and probably not in the best headstate right now. "I'm… kind of." He said, giving a loose answer. "What's up?" He asked.

"Well," She said. "You said whenever I'm ready to talk. And I had a couple drinks with Hazel and Thalia, so I'm ready now. Also, I brought rose, which is kind of a girl thing, but I think wine is wine and also I like rose."

Percy was trying not to laugh at her, because Annabeth could also be an angry drunk, but she was smiling at him like he was the only thing in this world and he was drowning in her. "Now's not…" He trailed off, not having it in himself to say no. Before he had a chance to say anything else, she pushed past him.

"It's nice." She said, getting out two wine glasses. "The apartment, I mean. Is Grace here, or is she at Rachel's?"

Percy poured the wine for her, since he was pretty sure she would spill. "Annabeth, this is my mom and stepdad, Sally and Paul." He said, grinning.

"Oh!" She said, whirling around and fussing with the black silk blouse she had on, probably trying to cover the amount of cleavage that she had showing. It was appropriate for a bar, but probably not for his parents. "I'm sorry, you should have said you had company."

Percy waved it off. "No worries. It's late and they're old, they were probably just leaving." It was kind of rude, but he was hoping they would just get the hint.

"No, I should go." Annabeth said. "We have work in the morning anyway, so, I'll-"

"Stay." His mom said to Annabeth. "We'd love to chat with you." She said with a smile and a smirk towards Percy, leading Annabeth back into the living room.

Percy looked at Paul who gave him a hopeless shrug and a knowing smile, and they walked back from the kitchen where the two women were already chatting.

"That's a beautiful ring." His mom mentioned, eyes flicking up to Percy's, but he wouldn't meet her. "Where'd you get it?" She asked, knowing full well what it was.

Annabeth blushed. "I'm, um, getting married in about a week. Percy and I, we just work together." She said.

His mom's eyebrows raised. "Do you always have wine together on Wednesday nights?" She asked.

"Mom!" Percy protested, but she just smiled.

Annabeth blushed harder. "He's a friend." She corrected. It didn't help that she looked so gorgeous tonight. Her sheer silk black blouse was tucked into tight blue skinny jeans, and she had silver strappy stilettos on. She was curled onto a chair, legs tucked underneath her, and she kept pulling her hair to the side like it was making her hot.

He was about to offer Annabeth some food, hoping it would help her sober up, but then Grace came in.

"Annabeth!" She squealed, jumping up and down. Oh, fuck.

Annabeth laughed nervously. "Hi, Grace. How are you?" She asked.

"Good!" She said, grinning. "I can't sleep, can I stay up with you guys?" She asked.

"No." Annabeth and Percy answered simultaneously, and Percy bit his lip. He could feel his parent's eyes on him, but he ignored them. "Grace, come on, I'll take you back to bed." He said as Annabeth picked at her fingernails.

"Can Annabeth?" She pleaded. "Please, she reads stories better than you." Gracie asked, her wide eyes staring up at Percy.

"Grace, how do you know Annabeth?" His mom asked.

"Okay, time for bed." Percy said, hoping the little girl would keep her mouth shut. "Annabeth can take you, but-"  
"What do you mean?" She said, twirling a curl in her hand. "Annabeth was my old nanny, duh." She said, and the room fell dead silent.

"Come on." Annabeth said, standing and taking her hand. "What's your favorite story, these days?" She asked, leading Grace back down the hall.

His mom just stared at him. "Really?" She asked, then shook her head. "We should be going." She said, colder than she had been in a long time. The last time she had been mad at him was when he lied about being at a friend's when he was really at a girl's getting drunk in his junior year of high school. He felt like a child again.

"Mom, it's not what you think." He said, but it was lost on her.

"Percy, you're an adult. You can make your own decisions." She said. "I'm not mad, I'm just in shock. I'll call you tomorrow." She said, walking out the door with Paul right behind her.

Percy sunk into his couch, head in his hands. Annabeth walked out a few minutes later, and grabbed her purse.

"I'm sorry." She said. "Grace is asleep, if it makes you feel any better."

Percy looked up at her. Her eyes were tinged red, like she had just been crying. He grabbed her hand. "Sit, please." He said.

"Percy…" She said softly, rubbing circles on his hands.

"You wanted to talk. What's wrong?" He asked.

She shook her head, laughing without humor. "I'm not drunk enough anymore." She said, and Percy cracked a slight grin.

"It's not your fault." He said. "I should've said no. I should've said you couldn't come in."

She just stood there, tracing the lines on his hands. "I should go." She whispered.

But she didn't leave. She just stood there, holding his hand, him staring up at her wide gray eyes.

"I loved you." He said finally. "I barely knew you, but I loved you." He said, his voice thick with emotion.

She brushed her lips against his hand. "I know." She said, then swung her bag over her shoulder and left, the door slamming hard behind her.

-0-

They were civil that week. Asked how they're days were going, said hello and goodbye, shook hands in the morning. Acted as if they had no idea who each other were besides the small interactions at work. Honestly, Percy was fine with it. It was better than being completely ignored, and better than facing what had happened last week.

His mom had called that next morning, calmed down. She, obviously, wasn't happy and made him tell her everything. She told him that he should go after her, if he loved her, which he told her that it was dumb advice. She rolled her eyes and told him he was still a boy.

He went out with Jason and Frank later on Friday night, grabbing beers at a bar they had been going to since they were broke college kids.

They were having a good time. Reliving their college days and all the crazy shit they used to do together. Then, of course, they had to ruin it.

"We should run." Jason said. "I don't want to be out too late, we've gotta be up early." He said, looking at Frank who nodded.

"For what?" Percy asked, frowning.

"Annabeth's wedding." Frank said, and Percy's vision went blurry. He could hear them still talking, grabbing their coats, and then his stomach turned to lead. He didn't - this couldn't - happen. She was the love of his life, and he just… he let her go. She was getting married tomorrow.

He felt sick, and he thought it might have been from the alcohol. He reached for his beer, but he stumbled and knocked it over. His body doubled over and he vomited all over the bar.

"Dude." Jason said, half smiling as Percy hurled again.

"Are you okay?" The bartender asked, but Percy just ignored him and dragged his friends out into the summer night, Jason yelling to put it on his tab as they left.

As soon as they were outside, Percy took a breath and sank down on the sidewalk, head in his hands.

"Did you have too much to drink?" Frank asked.

Percy shook his head, avoiding his friend's concerned looks. "I didn't… I forgot Annabeth's wedding was tomorrow." He said, his voice cracking.

"Shit." Jason said, and he felt them sit down next to him.

"So it's true?" Frank asked.

Percy looked up, ignoring the people staring at them. "People knew?"

Jason shrugged. "There were rumors." He said. "People talk."

Percy groaned. "It was just sex, but… but fuck, I love her." He said.

"Then tell her." Frank suggested. "There's always objections. It's at the Plaza."

Percy gave a short laugh. "Dude, I'm not ruining her big day. She'll hate me even more."

Jason clapped him on the shoulder. "Chances are, if you love her, this isn't her big day." He said. "Frank and I gotta go, but I'll hail you a cab." He said, sticking his hand out.

After he got home, he collapsed. He couldn't, he wasn't going to go object. It was wrong… right?

a/n: Happy Tuesday! hope you all had a good weekend. Updating this from 2500 feet in the air because I'm headed home for Thanksgiving! I love college and freedom and all that but dorming sucks. Anyways, if you didn't see my last chapter, I asked for opinions on what story I should start next and the votes are in:

Option 1: 8

Option 2: 4

Option 3: 6

So, I will go with Option 1, thank you to all that voted! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you Friday

-a


	18. The White Dress

Chapter 18

Annabeth

Annabeth had went to bed feeling sick and had woken up even worse. Everybody was telling her it was normal jitters. Everybody feels like this, don't worry, after you'll be so happy.

She and Ethan had spent the night apart last night. Annabeth wasn't usually one for traditions, but this was a good choice. She would have felt even worse sleeping next to him last night. She had stayed at a room in the Plaza with Piper and Hazel, celebrating the fact that they were all married now - or they would soon be.

She wanted to scream or cry or stomp her feet like a child but she did none of those things. She greeted all of her friends from home and her stepmom with class, let them dress her up with mascara and heels, let them make her look beautiful.

Even her stepmom, Susan, who she usually fought with all the time was being nice to her. "I'm so proud of you." She said, giving Annabeth a hug while they were in the dressing room. "Let's pray for a no drama day, yeah?" She said, laughing slightly. Annabeth smiled slightly, but she didn't speak. She felt like a walking zombie, a shell of herself.

The real Annabeth watched this Annabeth get dressed. She watched her swipe lipstick on, her favorite nude one. Watched her stand in the burning water, watched her shave herself before tonight, her honeymoon. Annabeth barely recognized herself. She felt twenty three again, standing there in the pouring rain, sobbing as she left Percy on the sidewalk. She had been in love. She could admit it now, now that it was too late.

Her dress was unzipped and everybody squealed while Annabeth smiled like the dutiful bride. She wanted to run but she couldn't. She felt tied to everything, to Ethan, to this dumb hotel, to this extravagant wedding that she had wanted on a beach but her new mother-in-law had said it wasn't traditional enough.

Only Piper noticed something was off. Annabeth could tell her friend was worried about her, constantly giving her a concerned look, taking her hand whenever Annabeth was feeling extra uncomfortable and it became glaringly obvious that something was wrong.

"Are you okay?" Piper asked when they got a slight bit of breathing room. They were less than thirty minutes from the first song, the first step, the flower girls walking down the aisle. Piper was the only one next to her now, the rest of them filing out of the room to go take their seats and positions.

"I…" Annabeth trailed off. "I'll be okay, yeah? I love him." She said. "I love him." She repeated, but she was no longer sure who she was talking about.

Piper kissed her head. "Yeah, you do. Don't worry, you guys are beautiful together. And you!" She said, and they laughed. "You are more beautiful than Hazel and I ever were. Seriously, you're the hottest." She said, and they laughed again. Annabeth smiled up at her.

"I love you." Annabeth said.

"I love you too." Piper said with a warm smile. "Now, let's get a little more lipstick on, yeah? And we should curl your eyelashes again."

Thirty minutes later, Annabeth stood in the hallway, staring at the closed door that lead to the altar. Her hands were shaking, and Piper took one to steady them. "Relax." She said. "You'll be absolutely perfect up there."

That wasn't what she was worried about, but she didn't say anything. The music started, and Silena, her friend from San Francisco went first with a friend of Ethan's. Then Katie, then Hazel and then Piper with Ethan's brother, the best man.

Her dad took her arm. "Ready?" He asked, then kissed her on the head. "I love you, you know that, right?"  
Annabeth nodded. "I love you too, Dad." She said, then her music cue played.

The only thought going through her head when she walked was _What are you doing?_ People gasped as she came down, murmuring about how beautiful she looked. Ethan smile couldn't have been wider, but Annabeth just bit her lip. She didn't have the strength to return it.

Her dad said goodbye, and took his seat next to her stepmom. Ethan took her hands and said something that she didn't hear. She felt like she was going to faint or hurl, whichever came first.

This wasn't the feeling you were supposed to have right now. Before, she could have chalked it all up to nerves, but now… now was when he was supposed to make you feel all okay. When you were supposed to feel safe and happy and excited for the endless future with this one guy. All Annabeth could think about was her unhappy feet in stilettos and the fact that she was in love with another man.

Fuck.

The thought hadn't crossed her mind until now. Leave it to Annabeth to think that in the middle of her wedding procession.

She had vows prepared, but there were tears in her eyes, and not from happiness like everybody else thought. She forced a laugh out. "I - I just love you. I had them prepared, but I just want to be married." She said, laughing again, and Ethan grinned at her, his eyes so full of real love.

She was broken. Ethan wasn't. Why did she ever think she could bring her fucked up self into his life and think it would all be okay. She and Percy deserved each other.

Ethan read his vows, but the only voice she could hear was her own. _Leave. This isn't right. You can't leave him on the altar. He is right. You love him too._ Her thoughts were jumbled and mixed and they wouldn't leave her alone.

"If there are any objections, please speak now or forever hold your peace." The priest said. _Please._ Annabeth thought. _Somebody, object._

The room was silent though, everybody smiling up at the happy couple. "Alright, then. Ethan Sheffield, do you take Ms. Annabeth Chase to become your beloved wife?" The priest asked.

Ethan beamed at her. "I do." He said kissing her hand.

Annabeth wanted to vomit.

"Annabeth Chase, do you take Ethan Sheffield to become your beloved husband?" He asked.

Annabeth just stared. Long enough to cause a stir, and people started whispering. She was staring at Ethan, but she couldn't see him. He squeezed her hand.

"I…" She said, her stomach swirling. "I…"

"Ms. Chase?" The priest asked.

"I-" She started again, trying to force the word do out of her mouth.

"Wait!" A familiar voice said, the doors banging as they were thrown open with force. Annabeth's stomach finally gave in, and she emptied the contents of her stomach onto Ethan's shoes.

"I'm so sorry." She said, Ethan leaning down to look at her.

"Did you eat something?" He asked, and she started to cry.

"Annabeth…" Percy trailed off.

"And who are you?" Ethan asked, stepping off the altar. "I don't even… you're the guy from 230 Fifth, aren't you?" He turned on Annabeth, who was grasping Piper's hand, trying to hold her guts in. "You lied to me?" He asked, his eyes full of hurt.

"Annabeth, don't do this." Percy said, focusing on her. "I love you. Please, don't do this." All Annabeth could do was vomit again, Piper rubbing soothing circles on her back. Once she had nothing left to throw up, she stood.

"Ethan." She said, but she was staring at Percy. He was wearing wrinkled jeans and an old college t-shirt, and he had bags under his eyes like he hadn't gotten enough sleep. He was here, though, and for the first time that day she could see clearly.

"Annabeth, who is this?" He asked.

"Annabeth, get down from there." Percy pleaded with her.

"Percy, you shouldn't be here." She said, shaking her head.

"I couldn't stay away." He said. "I can't get you off my mind, Annabeth. I love you. Please, you can't do this to yourself, to us."

Annabeth sobbed. "There is no us!" She said, stomping her foot, vaguely aware of the people watching them like a movie. "There never was, and there never can be because… because we aren't right for each other, Percy. We're a disease, and everything, everybody we touch dies. Do you get that?" She screamed.

"Who is Percy?" Ethan demanded. "Why have I never heard of him. When we talked about your exes, you only mentioned Luke." He said.

"Ethan!" She turned, screaming at him now. "Jesus fuck, shut up!"

"Did you have an affair with him?" Ethan asked, and the whole audience gasped like they were a fucking show.

Annabeth sniffled, rubbing her nose. The whole thing was such a disaster, she could laugh. "No. Not while we were together."

"Then where did you meet him?" He demanded. "Why did you not mention him to me, if he's in _love_ with you, Annabeth? I mean, what the fuck? What-"

"Because he was married!" She screamed down at him. "Gods, please, make me shout that in front of everybody." She got down, and threw her bouquet at Percy, who caught it with ease. "Yes, everybody stare. I had an affair with a married guy. You know, we even fucked in the subway once? Like teenagers? Yeah. I'm fucked, Percy's fucked, but Ethan…" She trailed off, close to the doors now. "Ethan, go find somebody good. Please. That's all I want for you." She said, then ran out the door, the harsh call of Annabeth coming from Percy's mouth.

The limo was waiting outside, and Annabeth was jolted into reality. She had just done that. She had confessed to everybody, in front of hundreds of people, that she and Percy had an affair. She had left Ethan at the altar. Another sob wracked her body, but the dumb driver just stood there, door open and staring straight ahead.

"Hey." A soft voice, Piper's, said from behind her. "Let's get in." She said, and Annabeth allowed herself to be put in the limo. "JFK, please. Me and my friend need a vacation." She said, and Annabeth smiled gratefully.

"I can't believe he…" Annabeth trailed off, taking off her dress and changing into comfortable airport clothes. "I mean, what was Percy thinking."

Piper shook her head. "No idea. On the other hand, you weren't going to say I do either, so." She pointed out.

Annabeth shrugged. "True." She sighed, putting her head in her hands once she had put on a sweatshirt. "What's wrong with me? Why do I always go for the wrong guys, Piper? I mean, I obviously can't be with Percy. I can't trust him, but I can't be with anybody else now. All I do is compare them."

"Hey." Piper soothed. "Hey, you'll find somebody. Okay? You'll have your fairytale."

Annabeth just started sobbing again, and Piper held her, rubbing circles on her back and stroking her hair.

-0-

Later that night, after laughing about their honeymoon suite at the Atlantis hotel, the two of them had ordered room service and were in fuzzy robes watching TLC.

"These shows are so dumb." Annabeth said, reaching for another fry.

"Yeah, pretty much." Piper said, but neither made a move to change the station. "You gonna call him?" Piper asked after a short pause.

Annabeth curled closer into Piper. "Which one?" She asked, and she could tell Piper was trying not to laugh. "Yeah, I'll call Ethan. Tomorrow." She said.

Piper laid her head on Annabeth's. "Tomorrow." She agreed, and Annabeth closed her eyes, exhausted from the day.

The Bahamas looked even more beautiful in the morning and Annabeth took a much needed long shower that next morning. They went to some buffet breakfast thing where all Annabeth could eat was mimosa's and coffee.

Piper was acting like Annabeth was a broken doll, which was driving Annabeth crazy. She wasn't going to cry or kill herself. She just wanted to get drunk, go swimming in the ocean and eat out at fancy dinner's every night. She just wanted to live.

Of course, as soon as she got her international phone plan, she had five missed calls from Ethan, thirteen from Percy and a dozen other from Hazel and her parents and other friends.

She didn't know who to call first. Piper left the room to give her some space so she could call in private, but Annabeth couldn't bring herself to talk to anybody.

Luckily, Ethan decided for her. He called her again as she sat there on the huge king sized bed, trying not to cry.

"Hi." She said, lifting the phone tentatively to her ear.

He was silent on the other hand, the only sound his heavy breathing and his feet pacing on the wooden floor of their - no, his - apartment. "I… what? Why?" He said, his voice cracking.

Annabeth swiped a tear that had appeared. "Ethan…" She said, trying to control her voice.

"You owe me an explanation. You owe me." He said in a tight voice.

"You don't-" Annabeth started, shaking her head. "You don't want one. At least, you don't want the reason I have."

"Was it that guy? Was he really right? Do you love him?" He asked.

"I…" She started, but she couldn't finish.

"Fuck, Annabeth." He said, and she was pretty sure he was crying. "Fuck you." He said quietly.

Annabeth started to cry. "I'm sorry." She said in between gasps. "I never meant to drag you into this mess."

"Did you…" He started, then took a breath. "Did you ever love me?"

Annabeth heaved a sob. "Of course, Ethan. I just love somebody else more." She said, using her sweatshirt to wipe at her tears.

"Right." He said. "Well, Annabeth. I'll see you around, yeah?" He sounded angry now, and Annabeth didn't blame him.

"Goodbye, Ethan." She said quietly, then hung up the phone before he had the chance to say something else.

Annabeth felt like screaming. Her head was spinning, and her whole life was a mess and she was pretty sure she was having an anxiety attack. She tightened her hand around her phone, the anger in her stomach boiling.

Anger at herself, at Percy, at the world. Why had she gotten herself into this mess in the first place?  
The tears were so thick that she couldn't see, and her fingers turned white as she clenched her phone. She wanted to scream, cry, rip her hair out, run, and she threw her phone against the wall with a scream before crying harder, burying her head into the white pillow.

Piper came back thirty minutes later and found Annabeth sound asleep, white pillow now stained black from mascara and tears.

a/n: okay yeah we are here... sorry I am a day late, it's been a busy week! Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and enjoyed this chapter. Love you all, please review

-a


	19. Three Little Words

Chapter 19

Percy

What had he been thinking?

Gods, he was so fucking stupid. He was so dumb. In what world did he think that would turn out good?

Well, at least she wasn't married, so there was that.

No, that was the wrong way to think. He ruined her day, her vacation, her _life._ The pain he had caused her extended so much farther than her wedding. It went back to where she had asked him to make a choice, and he had let her lead him into sex instead. It happened when he had yelled at her in the middle of his penthouse, making her feel like an employee instead of the woman he was in love with. What was wrong with him?

He had gone straight to a bar after the wedding (if you could even call it that), and had drank himself into a deep state of unconsciousness. He ignored multiple calls from his friends, and had passed out at 4 am that night after multiple beers.

Of course, he had totally forgotten Grace was getting dropped off for her week at 8 AM the next day.

Rachel knocked, sharp and loud, exactly on time. They weren't on speaking terms yet, but they were at least saying hi to each other now.

"Who is it?" Percy asked, jolting awake at the knock. He could barely open his eyes and his head was pounding.

"It's Rachel and Grace, Percy." She said. "Open the door, please. And you need to start answering your buzzer, I had to beg the doorman to let me in." She snapped.

"Gods, will you shut up." Percy said, opening the door.

"Hi, Daddy!" Grace said, hugging him and then running to her room.

"You look like shit." Rachel stated, giving him a once over. "Anyways, I have to go to work, so call your mom if you're not capable of taking care of your daughter. Clearly, you're enjoying your single life." She said, then turned around. "Oh, also." She said, turning back around on a heel. Percy was barely listening. "I heard about your little interruption. Very classy, fucking the nanny." She said, then clipped off down the hall.

"Jesus Christ." Percy murmured, shutting the door.

"Dad!" Grace yelled, and Percy's head throbbed. "Can we get breakfast?" She asked, coming out from her room.

"Yeah, you know, how about I order some bagels?" He asked. "Also, I think grandma is going to come over today, are you okay with that?"

Grace shrugged. "Yep!" She said. "As long as she brings cookies." She said, grinning that smile she had inherited from him.

Percy laughed, then immediately regretted it. "Okay, hold on I have to call the bagel place." He said. "Here, you can watch a Disney show."

Her eyes widened. "Really?" She said, jumping up and down. "Thank you!" She said, running into the living room.

"Mom?" He said when she picked up on the third ring. "Can you please come take care of Grace today?" He asked.

"Do you have to work?" She asked.

"Uh, no. I'm just… tired." He said, wincing.

Sally sighed on the other end. "Percy." She said. "Fine, I'll be there soon."

"Okay, thank you. I'll explain when you get here." He promised.

"I'm sure." She said, then hung up. He ordered bagels through postmates, and poured Grace some orange juice.

By the time he and Grace were done eating their everything bagels, his mom showed up with cookies in hand.

"Hi, sweetie!" She said as Grace ran to her and Percy turned off the TV. "How was your week?" She asked.

"Good!" Grace said. "I got to go to ice cream with Sarah." She said. Sarah was the new nanny, who was a senior in high school.

"You did!" His mom said, smiling. "That's exciting. Hi, Percy." She said as she set the cookies down in his small kitchen that he never used.

"Daddy, I'm going to go play with my dolls." Grace said, running to her room.

"So, would you like to explain why you look like shit?" His mom asked, and Percy sent her an irritated look.

He told her everything, from the bar with Jason and Frank, to the morning before the wedding. He hadn't planned on going. He had gone for a walk through Central Park that morning to clear his head, and somehow his feet had carried him to the Plaza. He told her about how he ruined their wedding, and how she threw up and how he told her he loved her, and how now everybody - including Rachel - knew about their affair.

His mom didn't say anything, which he didn't know if that was worse or better. She was about to respond once he was done, but his phone buzzed.

He picked it up immediately. "Hello?"

"Percy?" Her small voice said on the other end, and he immediately got up, signaling to his mom that he was going to go in his room.

"Annabeth?" He said, before closing the door.

She laughed softly. "Do you not have my number?" She asked.

Percy smiled. "Thanks for calling me." He said.

"You shouldn't have done that." Annabeth said.

"Would you rather be married?" He quipped back.

She was silent. "Percy, that wasn't your decision." She said.

"I know."

"But I… No, I wouldn't rather be married." She said. "So, thank you, in some ways."

Percy shook his head. "I'm so sorry. About… everything."

"Yeah." She said. "Me too."

"When will you be back in New York?" He asked.

"Wednesday. Ethan and I were supposed to stay in the Bahamas until next weekend, but Piper and I are cutting it short, but Percy, we're not… this doesn't change anything." She said. "We're not together. I can't see you when I get back."

"I know." He said, biting his lip to try and stop a tear from falling. Was love supposed to hurt this bad?

"No, Percy, I'm serious." She said. "I can't do this with you anymore. Besides, I can't trust you. You're not good for me."

Percy leaned his head back on the wall, sinking down against the door. "I know." He repeated.

"Okay." She said. "I want you to know though… I - I love you, Percy."

"I love you too." He said, wiping at his eyes, holding the phone to his ear long after she hung up.

-0-

Annabeth passed the project off to the guy she had initially wanted him to work with, Phillip. He was nice, but not Annabeth. He heard rumors around the office that next month about her while they were finishing up the plans. At first, people talked about how she was taking time off, how she couldn't commit. Making her out to be a bitch, and it hurt Percy but he knew it would hurt Annabeth's reputation here even more if he said something.

He hadn't been expecting to see her, but he should have known they were going to run into each other around here at least once. It was actually the last time he was going to have to be in the office. It was later, too late to be working but of course she was there. He and Phillip had stayed late to finish up so Percy didn't have to come back next week, and he heard her soft voice before he saw her.

Annabeth laughed, and Percy froze. "No, I'm sorry, I'm actually going to get drinks with a friend right now. Maybe another time?" Was she being asked out?

"Percy?" Phillip prompted. "You need to sign here." Percy wasn't listening, staring out of

Office windows as she walked by. Her head turned, and everything slowed down. Her hair moved with the breeze while she walked, and her eyes latched onto his. A guy was standing next to her, and she looked slightly irritated with him, but as soon as he found her eyes she smiled slightly.

By the time he got over his shock and was opening the door to say something, she was giggling with Piper who was waiting for her by the elevators. Percy almost went over, but he didn't want to interrupt, so he just watched her go.

She turned once she got in the elevator, and raised her hand in a slight wave. Percy returned the gesture, unable to do anything other than stand there and watch her disappear.

The interaction with Annabeth got to him more than he wanted to admit. He couldn't sleep that night, flipping his phone in his hand and debating whether or not he should call her.

No. She had said she didn't want to hear from him.

Of course, it was harder to avoid her now. Since he and Rachel had divorced, he had been spending more time around Jason and Frank and their friends, so Annabeth was always invited.

The first time they got dinner as a group was awkward. He and Annabeth barely said hi, and she breezed past him, clinging onto Piper and Hazel's arms, knocking back three or four martini's before their food even came. He tried not to think about how the two of them completed the group, how it looked like there were three couples out for dinner.

The second time they saw each other in a group, they were going to brunch with friends - well, brunch was a loose term. It was 2 PM on a Sunday, and everyone besides Piper was extremely hungover.

Somehow, he and Annabeth got stuck sitting across from each other, forced to constantly look somewhere else besides each other. In the beginning they each talked to the person next to them; Percy to Frank and Annabeth to Hazel, but they were engaged too soon in conversation with other people, and Annabeth sipped her tea and took out her phone.

"You know we can't avoid each other forever." He said, wishing he could take her dumb phone and throw it out the window.

"We could try." She suggested, and he gave her a look even though she was still on Instagram or whatever.

"Annabeth, please." He tugged on her phone slightly, and she put it away with a roll of her eyes. "We could at least try to be friends."

Annabeth laughed, shaking her head. "Percy, no. I'm sorry, but I just… I can't be friends with you." The food came, and she dug into her pancakes.

"Why?" He asked, stabbing his eggs. It was a simple question, but one he knew she wouldn't have an answer for.

She sighed. "We aren't friends, Percy, and you know that."

He was about to respond, when Piper poked Annabeth on the shoulder from next to Hazel. "A, will you try this cocktail for me?" She asked.

Annabeth laughed. "Sure, Pipes." She ordered the pink drink, and Piper took a small sip from it. The girls started talking about the baby shower that Hazel and Annabeth were planning, and Percy was soon forgotten.

After, he pulled Annabeth aside. "Gods, what do you need?" She asked, wrapping her arms around herself. It was only early September, but they were having a cool spell.

"Take a walk with me. In Central Park. Just give me five minutes." He pleaded, and she glanced at their friends who were patiently waiting by the subway entrance.

"Piper, I'll text you okay?" Annabeth waved.

"Are you sure?" Piper asked, looking at Percy as if he was going to murder Annabeth.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I love you guys, see you later." Annabeth tugged on Percy's arm as their friends went underground. "You have ten minutes to explain why you feel the need to waste my Sunday." Her words were sharp.

"I just think that we're going to be around each other a lot anyways, and it would be… beneficial if we were at least civil around each other." He wasn't really sure why he had pulled her away. It was mostly selfish. He just wanted a few minutes with her again.

"Beneficial for who?" She walked faster, her heeled boots clicking on the dirty sidewalk.

"For both of us."

"We are civil. What is civil to you?"

"Uh, nice?" Percy had kind of forgotten she was this… feisty? She was smart, that was for sure, and she seemed to always know how to push his buttons. Before it had turned him on, but he realized now that it would be hard to be around all day long.

"I am nice to you." She was still power walking down 75th street, and even though Percy was a native New Yorker he was having a hard time keeping up.

Percy resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Will you just tell me what I did wrong? I mean, besides the obvious." He tugged on her arm, wanting her to slow down.

She scoffed. "Besides the - Percy, everything went wrong between us."

"Annabeth, we're going to be hanging around each other probably for the rest of our lives." She started walking faster, as if running away from him was going to solve their issues. "Wouldn't it be easier if we were friends?"  
Her fists balled, and Percy knew had had pushed her too far. She whirled around, hair flying. Angry people yelled at them when they stopped in the middle of the busy sidewalk, but Percy waved them off. "Do you want to know why we can't be _friends,_ Percy?" She said the word as if it was a disease, as if just saying the word friends would somehow attach herself to Percy. "Because everytime I look at you, everytime I hear your name, everytime I see somebody with black hair even, green eyes, I think about you and me and how fucking perfect we would be together. And how I wanted to get back together with you after the wedding, and honestly, I considered it, but -" She stopped, drawing in a deep breath. "But I don't _trust you._ I don't know when you're going to find somebody better, or somebody you think has a hotter body, or somebody with shinier hair, or whatever. And maybe that's my insecurities, but I don't think I'm totally to blame, because you are the one that cheated on your wife, not me. So just, please, leave me alone, because it is physically painful for me to be standing her with you but not be with you." She took another ragged breath, then turned and left, leaving Percy standing in the dust again.

a/n: Hey, it's Tuesday! I'm back at college and I already miss my bed :) Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. We are nearing the end here (about 2/3 done) and I've already started my next one! So excited for you guys to read the first chapter. Let me know what you guys think!

-a


	20. Calm

Chapter 20

Annabeth

Katie knocked on her office door, opening it slightly. "You wanna grab drinks in a minute? It's a little past five."

Annabeth nodded, sipping from her water bottle. "Yeah, hold on." She clicked on a few more things on her laptop, closing her tabs, then packed up.

"How was your weekend?" Katie asked as they waited for the elevator that never seemed to come.

Annabeth shrugged. "It was… interesting."

Katie laughed. "You can tell more over Cosmo's." They got on the 6 to Campbell's, shrugging their stuffy blazers off on the way.

"You know," Katie said, settling into a seat there, the two girls already catching the attention of a couple guys in suits down the row. "You're days always have way more drama in them than mine ever had."

Annabeth laughed, rolling her eyes. "It's not a good time. I'm not even sure how my life turned into such a shithole."

"Make a movie about it." Katie said, ordering their drinks for them. "So, what happened this weekend?"

"You know how at my wedding, that guy came in?" Annabeth knew full well she knew exactly what she was talking about.

"A, who could forget?" Katie laughed, taking a drink of her Cosmo when it came.

"Anyways, we run in the same friend group, especially since he got that divorce." Annabeth downed her drink, and signaled for another one. "We were at brunch and I could tell he was getting annoyed with my lack of… engagement with him." She didn't have a better word. "After, he pulled me aside and basically demanded to know why we couldn't be friends. I yelled at him, of course, and basically said fuck you."

"Did you really say that?" She asked, her eyes trained on Annabeth.

Annabeth laughed. "No. I told him that I didn't trust him anymore. Which is true, I don't, and I can't be with someone like that." Katie nodded, listening. "Anyways, it's over. Who needs boys anyways?  
"Facts." Katie said, and the two girls clinked their glasses together. "Except, those two are staring at us." She laughed, pointing towards them. They waved, and Annabeth waved back. It might do her some good to have a little fun tonight.

"Ladies." They greeted. "What are we drinking?" They asked, then bought them two more Cosmo's.

"I'm Mark, and this is Adam." The dark haired guy - Mark - introduced his blonde friend, who was noticeably staring at Annabeth more.

Annabeth stuck out her hand to Adam, shaking his. "Nice to meet you, Adam." She said with a smile.

Two drinks and a shot later, Annabeth was unloading all her problems on this poor guy she just met. "So, that's why my life is so messed up." She said, and he was too drunk to care. Katie and Mark had left already, stumbling over each other on their way out to hail a taxi. At least one of them was getting good dick tonight. "How's your life going?" She asked.

Adam chuckled. He was fine looking, but Percy was definitely nicer. Fuck. She wasn't supposed to think about him like that. "It's not as… crazy as that." He finished a beer, asking for another.

"And," She continued, Adam cracking a small smile. "And he had the audacity to want to be _friends_ with me. After he interrupted my wedding. Of course, I didn't actually want to get married, but I didn't want him to interrupt it either. I mean, who-"

Adam settled his hand on her knee, stopping her. "Annabeth."

"Yeah?" She asked, slightly dizzy from the contact on her skin.

"You wanna just go fuck? That might be a better solution to your… problems." He said, laughing.

Annabeth grinned. "I was wondering when you'd ask. My place." She said, grabbing her purse and hailing a taxi for them.

The elevator opened, and she fumbled around in her purse as she looked for her keys. "Wait." She gasped, giggling as he sucked on her neck. Her hands found the cold metal, and she opened the door, falling into her apartment.

He picked her up and she squealed, kissing him as she fumbled with the lights. She let him worry about finding the bedroom, and their night got longer and she was gripping the sheets and then she let loose a name.

"Percy." She breathed, barely even registering she had said that. Adam either hadn't noticed or didn't care, because he kept going until he finished. She stayed silent, not wanting to speak so she allowed him to stay in her bed. She pretended she was asleep until she heard his breathing get heavier and she stood, pulling on the silk robe she always kept next to her bed.

There was something magical about New York City at 3 AM. The streets were quiet, minus the occasional yell from a homeless person or the laughter of a drunk couple echoing up even to her apartment on the 17th floor. She got a glass of water, then went onto her fire escape, wrapping her arms around herself tighter to keep warm.

All that did was make her more confused. She felt worse, she felt like she had cheated on him almost. She felt distant, from herself, from her friends, from life even. She wished she could speed everything up, fast forward to when she's forty, with hopefully a steady marriage, a couple kids, an even better job, able to afford a nicer apartment wherever she wanted.

Of course, the one guy she fell in love with would turn out to be a dick and a cheater and _married._ That was exactly the kind of luck Annabeth had in her life.

She finished her water, the cool liquid slipping down her scratchy throat. She hadn't felt sick, but now her throat was hurting. Maybe she was just tired.

She returned to the bed, where Adam had luckily taken to one side of the bed. She took off her robe and folded it next to her on the nightstand, tucking herself in as far away as possible from him.

The next morning, she was perfectly pleasant, and if he had heard her say Percy's name last night, he didn't mention it. She made him eggs and coffee, and they had breakfast together, which was unusual for a one night stand. Well, she also didn't usually unload her life story on one night stand's, so there was that.

They got to the point where he asked for her number when he left, and Annabeth shot him down quickly. They always asked, but this time she felt slightly bad. Adam was a nice guy. He should be tied down, not running around New York finding girls like her to hang out with.

"Look, I…" She trailed off, not sure how to put it.

He waved it off. "It's okay. I get it. I hope you… I hope everything works out with that Percy guy." He said.

She thanked him, and he left. It wasn't until after she had watched two episodes of trashy TV that she realized she hadn't ever mentioned Percy's name - just last night in bed with him.

-0-

Annabeth's life became somewhat of a boring routine those next couple weeks. Wake up at eight, go to work until five or six, dinner either at home with her Chinese takeout or with Katie, watching Friend's reruns when she got home, and then sleeping at midnight. Over the weekends, she would do her normal dinner with everybody Friday night, dinner with the girls on Saturday, and then brunch with everybody Sunday.

She was absolutely in love with how calm her life had gotten. Honestly, she was considering staying single forever if this is what her life could be like everyday. She had time for herself, for slow walks in Central Park, for ramen after a particularly long day at work. She could walk as fast as she wanted when she had to transfer trains, she never had to wait for anybody. She ran her life.

Percy didn't talk to her anymore, and he made a point of not sitting next to her when they saw each other. It was what she had wanted, but it still bothered her more than it should have. She was sincerely happy, for probably the first time in a couple years.

Piper's baby shower happened that next weekend. Annabeth and Hazel had rented out Leuca's private dining room, and had invited everybody from Piper's coworkers to her friends from back in LA.

Annabeth was in full on planner, control freak mode and Hazel was just laughing. "No!" Annabeth shrieked. "The flowers go in between here, not over there." She said, fixing them.

"Jesus, what are we paying them for?" Annabeth asked Hazel, pulling out her iPad and making sure some idiot in the kitchen hadn't changed the menu she had carefully selected. Hazel just shrugged and told her to calm down, but Annabeth didn't. She was a perfectionist.

It turned out beautiful, despite Annabeth's worries. Piper sat at the head of the table with Annabeth and Hazel next to each other. The guest's presents were wrapped when they brought them so the gift wrap would all be matching. The food was amazing, and the mimosa's even better. They had a huge selection of cocktails and mocktails - there were three other pregnant women there - and pastries laid out before the main courses started.

Piper opened all her presents, and the girls cooed over little baby shoes and clothes and baby everything. Annabeth had gotten her a little diamond necklace with the baby's initials - MG - engraved on the back. It was baby sized, and Piper started crying when she saw it, which Annabeth decided was partly the hormones. Annabeth was the only one who knew the gender yet, since they had yet to do the gender reveal at the party. All Annabeth knew was that it was a girl, and her name started with an M - they wouldn't tell her the full name yet.

"Okay!" Piper said, wiping the tears from the corner of her eyes. "Fuck, sorry, I hate crying." She laughed. "And, I'll have to learn to watch my language in a few months." The group of them laughed as she continued. "Anyways, thank you all so much for coming and for all the amazing gifts and to my two best friends, Annabeth and Hazel who set this all up. My family here in NYC, thank you for making this place home for me." She said, grinning at the two of them. Annabeth thought she might cry, but that was ridiculous. "So, should we cut the cake?" She asked, laughing and cutting into the white cake, bringing out a pink piece.

Annabeth just clapped, smiling knowingly. Hazel and Piper hugged, and a waiter came over and finished cutting and handing out pieces.

"Also, wait, wait." She said, quieting the crowd again. "Jason and I do have a name picked out. Marie Ainsley Grace, named after my forever best friend's middle name." She said, leaning down and giving Annabeth a hug, and now Annabeth was crying. "Thank you for being my first friend here, and showing me life. I love you."

Annabeth wiped at her tears. "I love you too, Pipes." She said, taking a piece of cake to try and distract herself from full on sobbing.

After, the three girls stayed behind, packing presents into bags and cleaning up the ribbons.

"Wait, wait." Annabeth said before they left, grabbing three flutes of champagne. "PIper, toast with us." She said, laughing. "To being the three most powerful, badass women in New York City. And, to this new chapter of life with marriage and babies and adulting." She grinned, and Piper and Hazel laughed, Piper starting to cry again. "I'll always love you guys, forever." The three of them hugged, clinking their glasses together.

"Cheers." Piper said, crying now as they took one last sip together as free women.

-0-

Annabeth had successfully avoided Percy now for almost a month, despite them seeing each other every week. The most she had said to him was "Why do you need more pancakes?" when he had ordered another double stack at Sunday in Brooklyn but then she shut up because she remembered she wasn't supposed to be talking to him.

Time passed, though, and the wounds healed and it wasn't as painful as it usually was to see him. He cracked a joke and she smiled this time instead of pretending she didn't hear while the rest of the table laughed at dinner on Friday.

And then came the dreaded moment: all of their friends canceled on one of their Friday nights a few weeks later.

 **Sorry!** Hazel texted **Frank's parents are in town, so we have to take the night off. We'll see you guys next weekend though!**

An hour later, Piper texted. **I'm feeling really sick, so I think Jason and I are just going to stay in tonight. A and Percy, we're still on for brunch on Sunday though, right?**

 **Yeah, feel better.** Annabeth responded, then groaned and flopped back on her couch in her white slip dress with the ruffles on the bottom. Great.

Twenty minutes later, after coming to terms with the fact that she wasn't doing anything tonight, her phone rang.

"Hey." Percy said. Fuck. She hadn't checked who it was.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked, biting her nails like she always did when she was nervous.

"You haven't changed out of your Friday night clothes yet, have you?" He sounded nervous, which made her feel a little better.

"Percy…" She trailed off, sighing.

"What? You want to spend your night in front of the TV, when you know we could be having a good time. I won't even ask if I can pay for you. You know, you can just get the whole bill."

Annabeth laughed, shaking her head. "As long as we go to Sushi of Gari and 230 Fifth afterwards, I'll go with you. And we take the subway. Taking the taxi makes it look like we're on a date or something, which I'd like to make clear, this isn't."

"Oh, definitely not." He said. "Why would I want to go on a date with you?" He asked, laughing.

Annabeth scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. You should see what I'm wearing tonight, and you might change your mind. I'll meet you at sushi." Fuck, she had flirted. She hung up without waiting for a response, slipped on her leather jacket and heels and left.

Thirty minutes later since the subway didn't show up for years, she texted Percy that she was here.

 **Already sitting down.** He texted back right away, and she walked in.

"Hi." She greeted the hostess. "I'm with a guy, tall with black hair."

The hostess nodded. "Right this way, Miss." She lead her to the table, where Percy grinned and made a move to get out of his seat and pull out her chair for her.

Annabeth held up a hand. "Not a date, remember?"

Percy nodded. "Right." He sat back down, taking a drink of his sake. "I did order a bottle of sake for us, though. You like the ones with the apple, right?"

Annabeth blushed. "Yeah, right." It was awkward at first, neither of them knowing what to say, and Annabeth found herself increasingly reaching for her glass of wine as they made small talk. She ordered her usual shrimp tempura roll, but she found herself realizing that they were strangers now. They had to start all over. They had no clue what was going on in eachothers lives besides snippets of conversation they had heard over their brunch with friends.

"You do look stunning tonight." He said finally, followed with a large gulp of wine.

Annabeth blushed again. "Percy, I don't-"

"Just take the compliment, please." He looked almost depressed, and she was quiet.

"Have you… have you talked to anyone else since the divorce?" She asked, knowing she was treading in unsafe territory.

He shook his head. "No. I don't know. I don't think I would even get married again unless it was the right person. I don't want to put Grace through anything like that. What about you?"

Annabeth shook her head. "No, nobody."

They were quiet again, and she wanted to run from there. Percy looked just as uncomfortable, shifting in his seat every five seconds.

He shook his head finally. "I wish there was a way to start over with you. I'm not that guy that you know me as. I've never cheated before, I've never done any of that shit before. It was you, you made me crazy, Annabeth."

Annabeth tucked a curl behind her ear. "I know. I wish we had met under better circumstances too. We didn't, though, and that is the guy I know you as Percy."

He grabbed her hand across the table. "Please, can we just have a fresh start." His hand was cold, and Annabeth desperately wanted to pull away, but she found her fingers absentmindedly tracing patterns over his, like they used to do late at night, or in their passing touches in the middle of the penthouse.

"I…" She was inclined to say no, but she made the mistake of looking him in the eye. "As friends." She gingerly took her hand away from his, forcing herself to move back. "Just friends, nothing more."

He nodded eagerly, and she smiled. "Just friends." He echoed, moving away from the table so the waiter could clear there dishes. "So, friend," He started and she laughed. "Want to go get even more trashed than we already are?"

Annabeth shook her head, but she was smiling. "I'd love too." She said, standing and following him out the door, thanking the hostess on their way out.

a/n: Happy Friday! Crazy how this story has reached twenty chapters. Thank you guys so much for all your support, we're so close to the end! If I stay on this updating schedule, it should be over by about Christmas time (maybe even Christmas Day, since it's a Tuesday) and then I'll probably take a couple week break to write chapters for the next one, and then start uploading on the same schedule after the New Year.

Happy reading, and let me know what you all think!

-a


	21. Babies and Alcohol

Chapter 21

Percy

Percy and Annabeth had somehow gone from spending no time together to everyday. They met up for lunch during their workday, they frequented the Ulysses' after work at least a couple times a week. They went out after their friends got tired on Friday, they met up after their respective girl's/boy's nights on Saturday. They had even ran _errands_ together last Sunday after brunch, laughing as their fingers turned red from holding the grocery bags, stopping by a CVS to pick up shampoo.

It was purely platonic, and Percy was surprisingly one hundred percent okay with that. Not that he wasn't attracted to her in that way anymore, because gods if anything she had become even more beautiful in the past two years, but he just didn't feel the need to do anything about it. Obviously if she one day changed her mind, he wouldn't say no, but he was completely on her terms now.

It was Saturday night, and they had gone to a bar on the UES after dinner with their friends. They were laughing about something, Percy couldn't quite remember. It had been a long night.

She quieted, taking a long sip of her Cosmo, her lips lingering on the ring. "Have you told any of our friends we're hanging out?" Her voice was soft, and he could barely hear her.

"No." He shook his head. They always said they were going home after dinner, while they texted under the table about where they wanted to continue the they hung out before brunch, they always split right before to approach the restaurant at a different direction. He wasn't sure why they thought it needed to be secret. It wasn't wrong.

"I think I'm worried that my friends are going to disapprove." Annabeth said, putting it into words better than he could. "They… they like you, obviously, but I know they don't think it would be good if we got involved again."

Percy nodded. "I get it." He said. "But that isn't what this is."

Annabeth scoffed. "Obviously." She said, but in the back of both of their minds, they knew they were playing with fire. How long could they stay away from each other, honestly?

The next weekend, she let him pay for her after one too many drinks. "If you'd like to buy me a drink, I wouldn't mind." She cocked her head to the side, exposing her smooth neck. He wondered if she did it on purpose, if she _knew_ she could drive him crazy, or if she really had just had one too many drinks and couldn't keep her head from staying still.

Percy grinned despite knowing they were teetering dangerously close to the edge. "I'd love too." He said, adding her drinks to his tab.

Three days later, she showed up at his apartment with a duffel bag. Luckily, Grace wasn't there, or she would've been so confused.

"I know I should have texted, but I was so angry at my neighbors I couldn't even think straight." Annabeth said, barging in after he opened the door.

"What happened?" He asked, then looked at her bag. "If you wanted to move in, all you had to do was ask."

She shot him a look. "My neighbors, fuck, all night long. It drives me nuts. There's only so much I can listen too, so I knocked and they answered the door basically naked. I have put in so many complaints with my landlord, but why would he give a shit when his own apartment is a pigsty, and so I called Piper in the taxi, but then I decided not to go there because she's less than two months from having a baby, and then I was going to go to Hazel's, but she and Frank are on vacation upstate, and so now I have nowhere to stay because if I have to listen to them moaning one more time, I will go absolutely insane." She took a long breath.

Percy laughed. "Yeah, sure you can stay here. Grace's room is down the hall."

"Great, thanks." She said, dropping her bag down there. "Do you have wine?" She asked, coming out from the hallway.

Percy rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. "Yes, red or white?"

"Red." She responded, turning when she heard the clink of glasses. "No need for glasses." She said, settling onto his floor instead of his couch.

Percy came over, about to lift the bottle to his lips, when she pulled it away from him. "Thanks." She said, taking a big gulp as he chuckled and settled in next to her.

They sat in silence for a while, just passing the bottle back and forth until it was half empty. It probably wasn't such a good idea to get drunk in a private place, because who knew how Percy was going to control his mouth now, but he did.

"Do you have movies?" Annabeth asked, crawling over to his TV cabinet.

"Yeah, princess ones, Disney, lots of G rated stuff." He laughed. "I have Netflix, though."

Annabeth nodded. "Sounds good." She sat back down next to Percy, noticeably closer but he wasn't sure if it was just an accident or she meant too.

He scrolled through. "Wanna start a show?" He asked, then immediately regretted it. A show implied she was coming back later, that she would be back to watch it with him next Wednesday night.

"Sure." She seemed unphased. "Which one?"

"Uh, the Bodyguard?" He suggested. "I've heard it's good."

Annabeth shrugged. "Okay." She grabbed the wine and tried to take another drink, but there wasn't any left. "Do you have another bottle?"

He paused before answering. "Uh, yes, but-" She was already standing to go grab it. "Annabeth, we don't always need to be drunk around each other. I mean, it's not like we need alcohol to have a conversation."

"Percy," She ignored him, grabbing a white wine now. "I need to be drunk around you, because it's the only way I can deal with my bad decisions and I can block out how I really should just go home right now, and yet I somehow find myself with you every other night." She popped it open. "So yes, I need more wine."

He didn't respond, because honestly the words stung. He just took the bottle and lifted it to his lips, taking another swig. They started the show, which was good, but Annabeth was exhausted. He heard the wine clatter out of her hand less than thirty minutes later and was going to go clean it up when her head hit against his shoulder softly. She made a little sigh that melted him, then curled deeper into his side.

He thought she was asleep, but she murmured against his neck, her hot breath hitting right behind his ear. "I'm not comfy." She said, and he resisted the urge to laugh.

"If I carry you, are you going to freak out?" He felt the slight shake of her head, so he stood, scooping her up. She weighed nothing, or maybe he was just so tired he didn't notice. He laid her on his bed, pulling off her socks because he knew she hated sleeping with them on, then turned off the light.

"Goodnight." He whispered, thinking she was already out but she spoke up just as the door was closing.

"No, stay." Her voice was so soft, Percy wasn't sure he had heard her right.

"What?"  
"Stay." She murmured again. "Please."

"Are you…" He trailed off as she nodded, her hair frizzy against the pillow. "Okay." He crawled into bed next to her, and she scooted closer, resting her head on his chest. Her warm curls sprawled against him, and he was asleep within minutes.

-0-

They ignored what happened that night. They went back to their old - new? - routine of sneaking around behind everybody's backs, but they never talked about that night. It was too hard of a conversation to have, and it would cause nothing other than a fight.

"You're being ridiculous." Annabeth said, laughing. It was a Friday night, and they had said goodbye to their friends and headed to a bar in Midtown.

Percy shook his head, chuckling. "No, I'm not. I can't fly."

"But your work, you have to fly for that right?" Annabeth asked, sipping her Cosmo. Percy wasn't sure he had seen her order anything else.

Percy blushed. "I drove to San Francisco one time." He said quietly, but she heard and burst out laughing again.

Their nights got later and later, until a few times he insisted that he either ride the subway with Annabeth home or she stay at his place. She rolled her eyes, but she wasn't dumb. Three AM was not the time to be on the train alone.

In some ways, their relationship now was more intimate than it ever was. She wore his clothes to bed sometimes, she used his _toothbrush_ on a particularly late night a couple weeks ago. They shared everything, from remedial things such as taxis and stories to secrets and their morning cup of coffee.

They were meeting up after work when they got the call from Jason. They both knew Piper was at the hospital that morning, but weren't going over until after the baby was born.

"Oh my gods!" Annabeth gushed, showing a picture to Percy. "She's adorable!"

Percy wrinkled his nose. "She looks like a rat."  
Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Come on." She said, getting out cash to pay for her half of the drinks. "Let's go." She dragged him out of the bar, and hailed a taxi. "Mount Sinai on the Upper East, please."

Annabeth bounced her knee up and down the whole drive, the taxi barely moving above five miles per hour the entire time. "We should have taken the subway." She said, probably five or six times.

"If we had taken the subway we would be standing on other people's feet right now." Percy finally said after the last time she complained.

She shot him a look. "At least we would be moving."

Percy resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and stared at the taxi TV screen. Eventually, they pulled up and Annabeth opened the door before the car even stopped.

"Sorry, sir." Percy said, shutting the door. "We'll pay through Curb." By the time he finished talking to him, Annabeth was already inside and he had to run after her.

"Hi, Piper Grace? She just had a baby." Annabeth was saying to the front desk person when he caught up to her.

"Um, yes, third floor room 347." He said, and Percy thanked him. Annabeth pulled at her fingers and bounced her legs in the elevator, looking like she was going to explode if the elevator didn't move faster.

Piper's door was open, and they could hear voices from inside.

"Hi!" Annabeth said, waving to Hazel and Frank. "I'm sorry, there was so much traffic."

Piper looked exhausted and there were huge bags under her eyes, but she smiled up at Annabeth. "It's okay. Here, do you want to hold her?"

Annabeth looked slightly nervous, but nodded. Piper looked up and saw Percy, waving. Percy waved back, but his eyes were on Annabeth as she gingerly picked up the girl.

"Hi!" Annabeth cooed, letting the baby latch onto her finger. Percy probably would have started drooling at the sight but Jason came over to him.

"I don't know how you did it." Jason said, laughing.

Percy chuckled, turning towards him. "Congrats, man." He said, giving him a hug.

Jason had a nonstop smile on his face, and Percy was happy that he was so happy. Jason deserved it. "The nurse, who had a New York accent, didn't even say congratulations. She just came in, did her check, and then told us it only gets harder."

Percy laughed. "We love New York."

Before Jason could respond, Annabeth came over with the baby. "Do you want to hold her?" She asked, still staring down at her. "Hi, Marie." She said again, and the baby looked up at Annabeth with wide eyes. "Hello?" She asked, making eye contact with Percy.

Percy looked at the baby's hand attached to Annabeth's. "No." He said, smoothing Marie's hair back. "She likes you."

Annabeth let out a little laugh. "Sure. I want a baby." She said, laughing, and wiggled her hand again. Percy couldn't take his eyes off of her - Annabeth, not the baby. Obviously, she was joking, but the wrong idea started to cross his head, and he tried not to think about. There was no way after everything that had happened, him and Annabeth would end up having a _baby_ together. They couldn't even hang out without a drink, the two of them were in no shape to make another human being. And yet, he couldn't get it out of his head. How perfect and natural she looked with Marie, how _motherly_ she looked. Not a word he would have ever chosen to describe Annabeth, even when she was his child's nanny, but now…

"Here." Annabeth said, passing Marie back to Piper. "I'm coming over every day though." She said, and the girls laughed. Piper's dad came back in, and the four of them headed out into the hallway to go grab shitty hospital coffee.

While he and Frank went to the vending machines, the girls went to the bathroom. Immediately when they were alone, Frank raised his eyebrows. "You and Annabeth came together." He said.

Percy shrugged. "I saw her on the streets after work. Our offices are a block from each other."

"Don't make shit up." Frank said. Not mad, just direct. "You guys smell like alcohol, and Annabeth's not wearing her blazer or tights. Besides, it's almost 9 PM. There's no way the two of you were still at work."

Percy rested against the vending machine while it didn't work. Was there a vending machine in this world that did. "We were at drinks." Percy finally admitted. One of their cokes spit out, but the other was stuck.

Frank just looked at him. "Dude."

"I know!" Percy protested, not making eye contact. "It's just been a few times."

"Uh huh." Frank said as they went back to the waiting room. "Just, don't be dumb. I mean, I know it's too late for that, but-"

Percy rolled his eyes, hitting him lightly on the shoulder. Frank laughed, pushing him back, the girls rolling their eyes when they saw them.

a/n: Hey! Happy Tuesday, hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Review and let me know what you thought!

-a


	22. Tree Lights

Chapter 22

Annabeth

Now that Piper had her baby, and she was pretty sure Hazel was pregnant because she hadn't touched a drink in the two times they had been out that past month together, the six of them spent limited time together. The person she saw on the regular was Percy, and she kept telling herself that it was just because her friends were busy right now, that life was getting in the way, but in reality did she want her friends to tag along anymore?

In high school, she would have never guessed she would be twenty five without a steady relationship or even kids at this point. She had always been years ahead of her peers, in a successful relationship during junior and senior year, internships during high school, moving out at the age of eighteen, supporting herself in New York City. She had even looked older, dressing in blazers at the age of sixteen. Now, she worked and was single and drank too much and lived in an empty studio. She had the money to upgrade to a nicer apartment now, but she couldn't bring herself to leave it. It was the last part of her old self that she had left.

Thanksgiving passed and she had gone home for a few days to celebrate. When she got back to New York, it was full blown Christmas. Soho had decorations up, people were walking around making out in front of every christmas light they could find. Tourists and families were here to celebrate the holidays.

It was a Wednesday after work. She had stripped off her blazer and slipped on a shorter skirt, stuffing her clothes in her work tote before heading out to meet Percy at the subway station to go uptown to JBird for drinks.

Things didn't go as planned. It was pouring and windy and her umbrella snapped as soon as she walked out the door. By the time she got to the station, which was only two blocks away, she was absolutely soaked.

Percy laughed when he saw her, completely dry under his dumb Burberry umbrella that was big enough for a whole fucking family. Annabeth glared at him.

"Let's just go." She snapped as he followed her down the steps.

"Do you want to go home and dry off, first?" He asked as they swiped their metrocards.

Annabeth shook her head. "No, I'll dry on the train."

He shrugged. "Okay."

By the time they got to the bar she was dry, but her hair was sticking out like she had an afro and her makeup was basically completely gone. The bartender was trying not to laugh and Annabeth mustered up her best glare before laying her head down on the bar, groaning.

Percy chuckled next to her. "A whiskey, neat and a Cosmo please." He ordered for them.

"What if that's not what I wanted." Annabeth grumbled, sitting up.

Percy gave her a look. "You're kidding, right?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "How was your day?" She asked instead, avoiding the topic of how she probably spent a hundred dollars on Cosmo's a week.

Percy shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Made money."

Annabeth resisted the urge to roll her eyes again. "Percy, you make thousands everyday."

"Yeah, but I made extra today. I mean, enough…" He swallowed, looking nervous all of a sudden.

Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"Uh, I… I might have made reservations for us this Friday at Masa." He said, looking anywhere other than her eyes.

Annabeth almost choked on her drink. "What? I can't afford that." She said, shaking her head. "And if you pay, then it's a…" Her eyes widened. "Percy."

"It's not a date!" He swore. "Promise, I just want to treat you."

Annabeth just looked at him. "Percy, you're crazy. Treat me for what?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, being you."

"That sounds like a date." Annabeth stated. "But yes, I'm free, thanks for asking." She said, answering yes without having to actually say it because they both knew he was asking her out. She wasn't dumb.

They ignored the tension in the room, though and both had one too many to drink until the point where they were laughing louder than everybody else and annoying the stuffy couple next to them.

Percy finished his drink. "We should go, it's only Wednesday."

Annabeth laughed. "What, you're too old that you can't go out on a weeknight?"

Percy chuckled. "Come one." He grabbed her coat, slipping it over her shoulders. "Let's get out of here."

They ended up wandering down Lex to East Midtown, neither of them wanting to actually take the subway or hail a taxi. All Annabeth wanted was more _time_ with him, more drinks, more dinners, more nights in his apartment where they strategically waited until Grace was asleep and she rose with the sun to leave before the girl noticed. She had missed him, and now she felt like they were cramming in two years of time into two months.

"Percy!" She squealed, taking his gloved hand in hers without even thinking about it. "The tree!"

Percy laughed. "You've never seen it?"

She rolled her eyes, giving him a light shove with her free hand. "No, dummy. I just forgot the tree lighting was tonight."

They stood there, hands clasped together but with ample amount of space between them in the middle of 5th Ave. People were running into them, but they didn't move.

"It's beautiful." Percy whispered, and somehow she could hear him over all the noise.

Annabeth laughed again, though she suspected that was the alcohol. Nothing was funny. "Yeah. Christmas in New York is beautiful." She said, her voice slightly breathless from the cold.

"Annabeth." He said, and she turned to look at him. His eyes glittered in the golden lights, and they were staring at her, so firm and intense. They were inches apart, and Annabeth's feet took an involuntary step forward.

"Percy." She teased, smiling. She leaned up, their noses touching, hot breaths mingling in the cold air. He was waiting, for her, and somehow that justified her actions as her lips touched his.

It was sweet. She didn't feel fireworks, and her stomach didn't jump and she didn't have that aching need for _more_ now. He touched her cheek gently, and she just felt calm and peaceful because deep down she knew this was right. Honestly, did she expect herself to stay away from him?

She pulled away, slightly, their noses still touching, breath mingled together. Annabeth bit her lip to keep from smiling to hard.

"Come over." He said, his voice raspy.

Annabeth laughed. "Oh, no. No, no, no. We're taking this slow. We're not having sex for four months, you can put it in your calendar."

Percy made a face. "Only you would put a date on something like that." He grumbled, but he was grinning. He kissed her again, lightly. "Can Friday be a date now?"

Annabeth giggled. "I'll think about it. I'll see you then, okay?" She asked, kissing him again then turning and walking towards the 6 station.

-0-

The next morning after she had crashed, admittedly with a wide smile on her face, she woke in an even better mood. The sun was out today instead of the previous days of clouds, and it was like even New York City knew her life was good.

She got up a half hour before her alarm, so she actually got to take her time in the shower _and_ still have time for Starbucks.

"Hi!" She said, way to excited for 7:30 in the morning.

Her barista gave her a look. "You're chipper." He commented, going to make her mocha. "Usually you act like you're on the verge of death in the morning."

She smirked, taking her coffee from him. "Well, usually I am. Thanks, Stefan. I'll see you tomorrow."

He raised a hand in goodbye. "See ya."

Annabeth was in such a good mood that she wasn't even tempted to get a taxi that morning. She just walked out of the starbucks, turned right and went underground. By the time she got to work, she kind of felt like singing or dancing, and then decided that this maybe wasn't a normal reaction.

Her phone buzzed as she got on the elevator.

 **Can't wait to see you tomorrow :)** He texted, and Annabeth didn't care if her mood was weird or abnormal. She was happy.

Right after work was over, she called Piper and asked if she could come over. Piper sounded exhausted, and Annabeth felt a little bad, but Piper insisted.

"No!" Piper said. "Please, I need somebody to talk to other than Marie."

Annabeth laughed. "Okay, I'm getting on the 6 now, I'll be there in like 20 minutes."

When she got there, Piper's house was an absolute mess. There were clothes everywhere, dishes piled in the sink, and Piper was rocking a crying Marie.

"Woah." Annabeth said, stepping over a baby toy before setting her purse down on the cluttered couch.

"Take her, please." Piper shoved the baby into Annabeth's arms before collapsing on the couch. Luckily, Marie quieted instantly.

"Hi!" Annabeth cooed, letting her grasp onto her finger. Marie's eyes closed, and after a few minutes her hand went slack. "I think she's asleep." Annabeth whispered.

"Can you put her in the nursery, please? I'm afraid if I take her, she'll wake up." Piper said, standing slowly and starting to clean up. Once Annabeth had successfully put Marie in her crib, she came back out and started helping Piper clean up.

"Sit." Annabeth ordered, taking her friend's shoulders and leading her to the couch. "I can clean and talk."

Piper gave an exhausted laugh. "Okay, go fast before she wakes up again."

"Well, you know how you and Jason are obviously very busy, and Hazel is probably pregnant and I'm single and we haven't been doing as much together lately…"

"Annabeth." Piper cut her off. "Spit it out."

Annabeth avoided eye contact and started putting dishes in the dishwasher to help her anxiety. "Percy and I… we've been spending time together."

Piper gave her a look. "What do you mean _time?_ "

"Just like… dinner… and drinks. And sometimes lunch. And afterwork drinks. And-"

"Okay! We get the point. So are you guys like a thing, or…?" She trailed off, twisting on the couch to look at Annabeth.

"Kind of?" Annabeth said, her voice cracking.

Piper rolled her eyes. "So, that's a yes."

"We kissed." Annabeth said, and Piper didn't say anything, just waited for Annabeth to continue. "And I said I would go on a date with him, but I don't really know. I'm happy, like really happy but also I still feel like I can't totally trust him, but maybe I'm just paranoid because I really don't think I'll ever find somebody else like this, and-" Annabeth stopped, heaving in a deep breath, Piper biting her lip to keep from laughing.

"Can I give you advice?" Piper asked and Annabeth gave up on the cleaning and cleared a spot for herself on the couch, nodding. "I think you should go on this date. Honestly, I think you could marry him tomorrow and be just fine for the rest of your lives, okay?"

Annabeth blushed, rolling her eyes. "Don't be ridiculous."

Piper shook her head. "I'm not. I mean it, Annabeth. I've never seen him… no, I've never seen any guy look at a girl the way he looks at you. He's so far in with you, he probably wouldn't even notice if a naked girl walked by him. Also, it's pretty annoying to have you guy's flirting constantly, so you really should just get it over with."

Annabeth punched her, lightly. "You knew?"

Piper laughed. "Oh, we all did. Frank and Jason have ten dollars on the line. I think Frank won, he said one month before you made it official."

Annabeth wanted to be mad, but it was also pretty funny. "You guys!" She said, laughing.

Piper grinned. "Annabeth, go on this date. Now, you have to go Jason's going to be home soon and I should at least get out some sort of frozen Costco food for dinner."

Annabeth laughed, giving Piper a hug. "Good luck." She said as she slung her bag over her shoulder and got on the subway.

a/n: okay, kind of short but also... ! Hope you all enjoyed, review and let me know what you think. See you Tuesday!

-a


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Percy

Percy pulled at the sleeve of his suit, debating in his head on whether to drive or just get an Uber. He had been excited up until about ten minutes ago and now he just felt sick.

Maybe he should just wear a black suit.

No, the maroon looked good. She had said he looked good in that color.

Had he eaten that day? He couldn't remember.

Gods, he was fucked. He hadn't even seen her yet and he couldn't keep it together. He took a deep breath, straightened his tie, and went to call the Uber when his phone rang.

 _Annabeth_

Fuck. Was she cancelling on him? No, she wouldn't do that. It was on the third ring, and he needed to answer.

"Hello?" His voice cracked at the end and he mentally kicked himself.

"Hi," She took a deep breath, and a weight pressed on his chest. Why was she calling? "So, look. I told Piper that I would help out with the baby, you know, whenever, and she… Well, actually does it cost anything to cancel the reservation?"

Percy's heart sank. "No," He said, too quiet but Annabeth didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, okay good. Anyways, I was wondering if maybe we could reschedule? Piper just called and said she was in desperate need of a night out," She said, her voice going up at the end as if she was apologizing.

"Uh, yeah, of course. Piper needs you, go have fun," He said.

"What?" She asked, then she laughed. "Oh, no, I meant she wants to go out with Jason. I was actually calling to ask if you wanted to help babysit with me."

"Babysit?" He repeated, shaking his head. "Oh! Oh, you're not… so you're not cancelling?"

"Percy, don't be ridiculous. I told you I wanted to reschedule. So can you come to Piper's or not?" She asked, and he imagined her in her apartment, rolling her eyes and tapping her foot impatiently. The thought made him smile. "Percy?" She asked again, and he snapped out of it, realizing he hadn't responded yet.

"Yes, I can be there. When?"

"Just leave in like five minutes or so," She said. "And, Percy. You can wear something decent. They do live right by The Penrose."

Percy chuckled. "Okay. I'll see you soon."

By the time he got to the Grace's, Annabeth had already gone up. They lived a short ride from his place, just a few stops uptown, and he was kind of wondering how Annabeth had gotten there so fast.

"Hey, bro," Jason greeted. "Thank you, for doing this."

"Oh, yeah, no problem. Go, have fun." Percy said, eyeing the girls as Annabeth laughed and made silly faces at Marie.

"Piper, babe. You ready?" Jason asked, getting her coat for her.

"Yes," She said, kissing her baby goodbye. "Okay, if you guys need anything, feel free to call. Oh, also if she doesn't go to bed, then don't-"

Percy placed a hand on Piper's arm. "Piper, go. Don't worry, I already did this, remember?"

Piper sighed, stepping back out the door. "Right, right. We'll be back in a couple of hours," She said, shutting the door.

It was silent for a few minutes, Annabeth not looking away from Marie. "Hi," She said finally, her voice soft and quiet.

"Hi," He half-whispered back.

"I think she's falling asleep." Annabeth said, looking up at him.

"You can put her in her crib, hope she doesn't cry," Percy suggested, and Annabeth nodded, walking carefully over to the nursery. Percy stayed in the doorway as he watched Annabeth place a kiss to her fragile head.

"Goodnight." He heard her whisper, then placed her gently in the crib, stepping back silently. Percy shut the door quietly behind them, and so far there weren't any cries.

Percy grinned. "Pretty good for a first timer." He joked, and she gave him a look, but she was smiling.

"You want to watch Netflix or something?" She asked. They were close, and all he had to do was reach out.

"Sure.," He responded.

"Okay, there's-" She turned to leave, and he wound a finger in the belt loop of her skinny jeans, pulling her back to him.

He kissed her, and he felt her smile underneath him. When they came up for air, she was grinning. "Okay, now we can watch Netflix," He said with a loopy grin, and she covered her mouth to stop from laughing too loud.

They settled in on the couch, no alcohol this time. Annabeth slipped her heels off and curled into his side. It was only seven, and Percy was praying Piper and Jason were back by nine or ten so they could go out. The TV blared, but Percy barely paid attention. His hand rested on her wrist, stroking it slightly.

"Percy?" She asked quietly, the hand his was on turning over and linking her fingers with his.

"Yeah?" He asked, pressing a kiss to her head.

"Do you…" She swallowed, like she was nervous. "I mean, you want more kids, right?"

He looked at her in surprise, but her eyes were trained on the TV. "Of course. I love Grace, but I always wanted two or three kids. Why?"

"Don't know. Just wondering, I guess," She answered, not offering up any more conversation. They were silent through the rest of the show until Marie started crying during the credits.

Percy groaned, hauling himself off the couch. "I'll go," He said, Annabeth sitting up slightly so he could get up. Marie was flailing, and Percy kind of felt bad for her. It would suck to not be able to let anybody know what you needed.

"Hi." He said, picking her up. "What's up?" He asked, bouncing her up and down but she just kept screaming. Annabeth came in and the girl immediately reached for her.

Annabeth laughed. "Guess she doesn't like you very much." She joked, sticking her tongue out as she took Marie from him. The baby immediately grasped at Annabeth's breast, and she laughed again. "Are you hungry?" She asked, her attention all on Marie. "Here, let's get your bottle."

Percy leaned back on the wall, watching her feed Marie with the bottle and then setting her back down in the crib where she would sleep soundly for the next couple hours. Annabeth shut the door again quietly.

"What?" She asked, her lips turned up in a small smile.

Percy shook his head. "Nothing, why?"

She gave him a weird look. "You were smiling."

He grinned, kissing her. "You just look like a natural. It's attractive."

Annabeth blushed, but she was smiling. "Percy, I…" Her face fell slightly, and she leaned back. "Sometimes I don't know about having kids. I mean, I think they're awesome but… I've always pictured myself as the Aunt kind of person, you know? I just…" She shook her head.

"Hey, don't worry about it." He said, reassuring her. "You have plenty of time to change your mind."

"That's just it, Perce, you think I'm going to change my mind, but what if I don't?" She asked, avoiding his eyes. "I don't want you to regret anything, or hate me for not wanting kids."

"What?" He wrinkled his eyebrows. "Annabeth, I could never hate you. Besides, you're the one that said we should take it slow and now you're talking about kids?"

She put her hands over her eyes, shaking her head wildly. "I know, I know. This just made me think about it. I'm being ridiculous, let's just go back to watching TV or something?"

"A." He said, removing her hands from her face. "I want to be with you. If you change your mind, and want to have kids, great. If you don't, great. I just want you, okay, whatever comes with that." He was hoping he didn't say too much because he wasn't usually so sentimental but she was blushing and smiling so maybe he did okay.

She nodded, leaning up to kiss him again. "Okay." She said, then backing him up against the wall again and kissing him, harder. He placed his hands on her ass, hoisting her up and hooking her legs around his waist, deepening their-

"Oh!" Piper said, and Percy accidentally dropped Annabeth, wincing at the squeal she let out as she hit the ground.

"Percy!" She glared at him from the ground, sticking her hand up.

"Sorry!" He said, giving her a hopeful grin as he pulled her up.

"Well, good thing we came home before you started having sex outside my daughter's room." Piper said, slipping off her heels. "Was she okay?"

"Uh, yeah." Annabeth responded. "Cried once, but she was just hungry."

"Okay, thank you guys so much." Piper said. "Have a fun night!" She called, leading Jason into the bedroom as he waved.

Annabeth put on her shoes and Percy grabbed their coats. "We should go before we start hearing them." She rolled her eyes, turning around so Percy could help her into her coat.

"The Penrose?" He suggested as he opened the door.

She shot him a look. "Did you think I was going home on a Friday at 9 PM?" She asked, getting in the elevator.

He rolled his eyes. "What a disaster."

"I need my daily Cosmo." She said, then laughed, not able to keep a straight face.

By the time they got over there, the bar was already packed but they got squeezed in on the side. They ordered their usual cheese plate and drinks and Percy got a burger since he was hungry.

"I haven't eaten all day." Percy complained, taking a huge messy bite when it came, not caring anymore about eating in front of Annabeth.

She rolled her eyes. "I find that very hard to believe."

"No, it's true." He said, eyes wide. "All I've had is coffee. And doughnuts, because the office brought them in for somebody's birthday."

Annabeth laughed. "Sounds rough."

He grinned. "It was."

They ended up talking for another couple hours, until it was almost midnight and people were starting to trickle out of the bar.

"Another, Miss?" The bartender asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "No, I should be done. It's late, anyways. We should get going."

Percy nodded. "Yeah," He said, placing his card down on the table. "Thank you."

When they got outside, it was freezing cold and windy, the air biting at Percy's bare ears. Annabeth shivered, wrapping her coat around her tighter.

"You want a cab?" Percy asked, rubbing her back as she pulled on her gloves.

"Yeah, please." She said, tucking her hair behind her ear as Percy stuck out his hand.

He opened the door for her as the yellow car pulled over on 2nd. "Mercer between Spring and Broadway." He told the driver, as Annabeth climbed in.

"Goodnight," She said, leaning up to give him a kiss. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

Percy grinned, nodding. "I'll see you later." He said, shutting the door, waving as the cab sped off and turned left, heading downtown. He whistled, and another one pulled over. "E 46th between Park and Lex." He said, and the driver nodded. There was little traffic now, and he was home in ten minutes, watching the lights of homes flicker off.

-0-

By the time they had reached Monday, he and Annabeth had seen each other both Saturday and Sunday, and everything was going awesome. She seemed happy, he was definitely happy.

They were at a cafe on the Upper East on Sunday night, sipping wine and eating pizza before the long work week ahead. It was his weekend with Grace, and Rachel was dropping her off tonight after he got home. The cafe was only a couple blocks from his old apartment, but he assumed it would be fine.

Obviously, that was the wrong assumption. "Daddy?" A small voice asked from behind him, and Annabeth almost choked on her bite.

"Grace?" He sputtered, turning around. His old wife was standing there, hand on her hip, raised eyebrow.

"Hello." She said, coldly. Great. Two million people in Manhattan and they run into each other. Maybe the universe just hated him.

"Hi, Annabeth!" Grace said, waving. Then she frowned. "Why are you guys together?"

Annabeth sank farther into her seat. "Maybe, I should…" She started, but for once Percy wasn't paying attention to her.

"Yes, Percy." Rachel said, taking Grace's hand. "What are you guys doing together?"

"Uhh." He stuttered intelligently, and Annabeth kicked him under the table. "Getting dinner?" He suggested, but Rachel didn't think that was a good enough answer, and her glare darkened.

"Maybe we should go home and talk about this." Rachel said, and Percy knew better than to say no.

"Yes." Annabeth said, jumping up and grabbing her purse. "You should. I'll, um, see you later." She turned to Percy, then back to Grace, kissing her on the cheek. "Bye, Gracie." Then she was gone, sticking her arm out to hail a cab.

Percy threw down a couple twenty's and left, a half eaten pizza and a full glass of wine on the table.

The walk back to Rachel's house was cold and distant, and nobody said anything, not even Grace who was usually a chatterbox.

"Grace, go to your room." Rachel ordered, then got out a glass of wine for herself. "Really?" She asked, once their daughter was out of sight. "You know, I don't care if you go around sleeping with the staff, but at least don't do it two blocks from the house. I mean, you know Grace has extended day at school today. How could you be so stupid? You know that's the route we take home."

Percy just sat at the island, where he used to put his shoes on, where he used to set down his morning coffee mug, where Annabeth had been standing in that dumb sports bra and he had known there was no coming back. "Don't call her the staff, Rachel." Was all he said, because he didn't really care about her rant other than it pissed him off that she had said that.

"What am I supposed to call her? She was our nanny, for fuck's sake Percy." She snapped, her fingers tightening around the stem of the glass.

"For your information, she has a job, she's an architect."

"I don't care." Rachel turned so her back was to him. "Gods, you - you could have _told_ me you were seeing somebody again."

That's what all this was about? "You wanted me to tell you?" Percy asked. "Why?"

"Because I… because we were married and I - I loved you." She said, and the wine glass slipped from her fingers into the sink, shattering but Rachel didn't seem to notice. Her body was shaking, and Percy realized she was sobbing.

He didn't know what to do, because crying girls had never been his area of expertise, but he put his arms around her, pressing his nose to her hair. "I'm sorry." He murmured. "I didn't realize I should have."

Rachel snorted, pushing him off her and wiping at her eyes. "I know. That's why we didn't work."

Percy cracked a smile. "Yeah, maybe."

"Is it serious?" She asked, sitting on the window bench in their kitchen.

Percy hesitated. "I mean… kind of."

She nodded, wiping at her nose with her designer coat. A year ago it would have made Percy wince, but it was funny the things you didn't care about anymore when you weren't tied together. "She's nice." Rachel tried, and Percy let out a laugh this time.

"Rachel, you don't have to like her." He said, and she smiled.

"I know. I wish I hated her, but I think we would have been friends despite all these crazy circumstances." She said, her tears drying. "Anyways, I'm happy for you, but explaining to Grace that you're now dating her old nanny is on you."

Percy sat back down on an island stool. "She's gonna know someday. It's going to be obvious."

Rachel cocked her head. "What is?"

Percy stared at the ground, picking at a scab that had healed a week ago. "That I cheated on you." He said softly.

Rachel was quiet for a second. "Yeah." She responded, which made Percy feel worse, though he didn't know what reaction he thought he was going to get. Percy was about to say something else, a pathetic sorry maybe, but Rachel stood and called up the stairs. "Grace! Daddy wants to talk to you."

She came down, holding her stuffed animal that Percy hadn't seen in years. "What about?" She asked, her voice small. "Why was Annabeth with you?"

Percy glanced at Rachel, and she gave him a _man up_ look, so Percy took her hand and led her to the couch. Rachel followed and Grace sat in her lap, which Percy tried to not be hurt by.

"You know how Mommy and Daddy are just friends now?" He asked, even though today was the first time they had had a civil conversation. Grace nodded, waiting for him to continue. "Well, that means that we can have boyfriends and girlfriends now, that aren't each other."

Grace turned her head. "Annabeth is your boyfriend?" She asked, and Percy tried not to laugh.

"Uh, girlfriend because she's a girl, but yes. Annabeth and I are dating." Percy pretended not to see the wince on Rachel's face, keeping his eyes trained on Grace.

"So you love each other?" She asked.

Percy blushed. "Well um, no, not yet."

"Then what do you do?" She asked again, and his blush deepened. Rachel was trying not to laugh.

"Um, we go on dates and we hold hands. And we talk." Percy said, grasping for words.

Grace played with her bunny's ear. "Oh. That kind of sounds boring." She commented, and Percy snorted while Rachel outright laughed. "So now I have two mom's?" Grace asked.

"No." Percy said firmly. "No, Rachel is your only mom."

"If Annabeth is your girlfriend why don't I see her when I come to your apartment?" Her attention was back on Percy and not her stuffy.

"Well, Annabeth and I don't live together." He explained.

"Why?" She asked. "You and Mommy lived together."

He looked at Rachel for help, but she was clearly finding the whole thing amusing. "Because Mommy and I were married."

"So when Annabeth wears a white dress then you two will live together and I will have two moms?" She asked, going back to the whole two mom's thing.

"Um, Annabeth and I aren't getting married anytime soon. And, again, Rachel is your only mom. It's just that maybe one day there will be another woman living at my place, and a guy living here. But we're your parents, Grace." He tried, hoping she would get bored with the conversation and move on.

"Mommy, why don't you have a boyfriend?" She asked, turning and looking up at her mom, Rachel smiling.

"Maybe one day." Rachel responded, stroking her hair.

Grace turned back to Percy. "So when can we have dinner with Annabeth?" She asked.

"W- When?" Percy sputtered.

Grace nodded. "How about Friday?" She asked, and Rachel burst out laughing.

"Okay, sweetie, maybe you'll get to have dinner with them soon, okay? But you need to start on your homework." Rachel said, luckily stepping in and saving Percy.

"Okay. Bye, Daddy! See you this weekend." She said, giving him a hug and then running back into the kitchen to get her homework.

Percy gave Rachel a short and very awkward hug, then pressed the elevator button, heading back to his own apartment.

a/n: Happy Tuesday! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, it was fun to write. 7 more chapters!

-a


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Annabeth

It was two weeks after the whole crazy thing with Rachel and Grace, and she and Percy had religiously stuck to downtown for nights out. Percy had told her what happened with Grace the next night after, and Annabeth had laughed.

"She's cute." Annabeth commented after her giggles were over, and Percy grinned.

"Yeah." He said, leaning in to kiss her, her back hitting the couch. "You are too." He murmured, dipping lower.

It was Sunday, and they had spent the whole day in sweats on Percy's couch with the TV on in the background, a bottle of wine and fancy cheeses his parents had brought back from their trip to Europe. Annabeth had spent the night last night after a dinner at Sushi of Gari, for the first time since they had decided to start going out. She had said they could have sex, but Percy had weirdly stopped them, considering he had been the one to complain about her four month date.

They had been quiet for awhile, Percy responding to emails as he ran his fingers through her hair, Annabeth relaxed back on his chest, staring out at the skyscrapers of Manhattan.

"A?" He asked, and she hummed in response. "Would you want to come over for dinner on Saturday?"

She cracked a smile. "You mean after we hang out everyday this week, or…?" She trailed off, twisting to look up at him, his face slightly worried. "What's wrong?" She asked, taking his hand.

"This is moving… fast. Right?" He asked, and Annabeth wasn't sure if he was just looking for confirmation or if he was worried it was moving too fast.

"I guess." She said slowly, playing with his fingers. "I mean, we already knew each other and it's been a few weeks, but if you're not okay with it we can take a step back?" She posed it as a question, because there was a heavy weight setting on her chest and she didn't like it.

"No!" He rushed out, and Annabeth felt herself let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I mean, no I don't think it's going too fast. I just was wondering if you wanted to come over when Grace is here. Instead of me asking the nanny."

Annabeth sat up. "Really? You don't think she's going to… I don't know, is it going to be weird?"

Percy shrugged, sitting up with her. "She already knows you. Besides, she already knows we're together, so it's not like we'd have to explain that. Only if you're okay with it, though. I don't want to pressure you or anything."

Annabeth smiled. "You're not. I'd love too." She said, and they relaxed back on the couch. "Are you gonna cook for me?"  
Percy laughed. "Maybe. I'm pretty awesome at it."

Annabeth snorted, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure."

"Don't underestimate me." He warned, jokingly. They were silent for a few minutes, until Annabeth spoke again.

"Do you think we should at least go to dinner or something?" She asked.

Percy chuckled. "Yeah, maybe we should do something with our day."

She grinned, turning to give him a kiss. "I'll go shower." She said, then hopped off his lap and grabbed a towel.

-0-

Annabeth flopped down on her couch, exhausted. Work had been harder than ever this week and all she and Percy had time for was a quick facetime that she fell asleep in the middle of when he went to the bathroom. It was Friday, and she was supposed to be getting ready for dinner with Percy at Balthazar, but instead she barely could get off her couch.

With thirty minutes to spare, which was definitely not enough time to pick out an outfit, put makeup on and fix her hair, she hauled herself up, stumbling to the kitchen to make herself some coffee. Twenty minutes later, after a failed attempt to fix her hair, she slipped on a loose black jumpsuit, threw on a maroon duster coat, and put on mascara. It was as good as it was gonna get.

She walked the short distance to the restaurant, crossing her arms as a sharp wind blew, heels clicking on the cement. He was already seated when she got there, and she walked over without checking in with the host.

"Hey." He said, standing to pull out her chair and give her a quick kiss.

"Hi." She said, slipping off her coat once she was seated. "Gods, what a crazy week." She took a sip of the wine that he already ordered, grateful for once that Percy insisted on ordering the most expensive thing on every menu.

He chuckled. "I know, you were busy. How was work?"

"Good," She said, opening up the menu. "Busy, but I like it. How was your week?" She asked. They talked about everything for the next couple hours, and Annabeth found herself thinking about how nice it would be, to get to talk to him everyday. To see him when she got home, even if it was just when she slipped into bed, their schedules so busy yet they always saw each other then.

They paid, and Percy invited her over, cabbing it up to Midtown. They said hi to his doorman, taking the elevator seventeen floors up.

"I have a surprise for you." He said once it dinged on his floor. "So close your eyes."

Annabeth gave him a look. "I hate surprises."

He laughed. "I know, but just trust me."

She didn't want to, but she closed her eyes, feeling his hands rest on her waist as he opened the door.

"Okay." He said. "You can open."

Her eyes fluttered open, and she gasped. From the doorway to the bedroom, there were candles lining a path. The lights weren't on, and the city glittered in the background. Rose petals were thrown in the path the candles made, and there was a bottle of champagne and two glasses already poured on the kitchen island.

Percy was bouncing on his heels, blushing. "You like?"

Annabeth let out a little laugh. "Like? Percy, I… I don't know what to say. It's beautiful. Who did all this? I mean, we were at dinner, you didn't have these candles burning that whole time did you?"

Percy grinned, shaking his head. "Piper and Hazel did it while we were out. I asked if they were free."

Annabeth took the glass of champagne from him. "Does this mean we can have sex now?" She asked, shutting the door behind her.

Percy laughed, lifting her up and hooking her legs around his waist. "Definitely." He murmured, and she placed her champagne back in the kitchen. Alcohol could wait.

The bed was even more beautiful, with rose petals and candles lit throughout his room. She turned her head as he nibbled on her ear, catching a glimpse of the Empire State Building. He slipped off her jumpsuit, leaving a hot trail of kisses down her stomach, and she turned her attention back on him. He was more beautiful than any city.

-0-

Three AM that night, and Annabeth woke up, her naked body curled against his, facing the window and the skyscrapers. She untangled herself, taking the bed sheet with her so she could pee and get a glass of water.

The candles were all out, and Annabeth vaguely remembered him getting up to go blow them out, but she it wasn't an intact memory, just a vague idea of her complaining when he slipped out of bed. She smiled to herself, opening the door to his balcony. It was freezing out, below thirty at least, but she wasn't cold as she stood there with bare shoulders, the wind threatening to blow the sheet off completely.

"A?" She heard his voice call, but she didn't respond, hoping he noticed the open balcony door. "Hey." He said softly, sticking his head out in nothing other than boxers. "Aren't you freezing?"

She cracked a smile. "Slightly." She said, opening up the sheet to let him slip in behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, tucking his head into her shoulder.

"It's beautiful out here." He murmured, and she nodded, playing with his fingers. They stayed like that for a little longer, until he spoke again. "I love you." He said, so quietly she wasn't sure she had heard right.

She twisted around in surprise, and he shook his head. "I'm sorry, that was too - I mean, we've only been officially going out for about a month and -" She leaned up, silencing him with a kiss, completely turning so they were pressed together.

"I love you too." She said against his lips, and she felt him grin.

"Can we go back to bed now?" He asked, and she laughed.

"Yes, definitely." She said, taking the sheet back and shutting the door, leading the way back to his huge, oversized bed.

The next morning, they had to be up early since Grace was coming over, and Annabeth groaned when Percy's alarm went off at 7 AM.

"Too early." She complained, rolling over and burying her face in the pillow. Percy ignored her, getting up and heading for the shower. She followed, trying to insist that they were just showering but it turned into sex anyways. She put on real clothes instead of one of Percy's t-shirts because she didn't want to piss Rachel off too much, and watched Percy start breakfast as her curls dried.

The buzzer rang at exactly 8 AM, and she went over to let them up.

"You're already here." Rachel said, giving Annabeth a once over.

"Annabeth!" Grace squealed, hugging her legs.

"Rach, in the kitchen." Percy called, and Annabeth trailed behind her, feeling very underdressed in her lounge clothes as Rachel towered over her in work heels and a pencil skirt.

"Want some breakfast?" Percy asked, then blushed. "Uh, probably not."

Rachel gave the apartment a survey. "It's messy." She commented, and Percy rolled his eyes. Grace was oblivious to the tension, sitting on the floor of the living room playing with an American Girl doll.

"Annabeth should move in, she probably could decorate better." Rachel said, and Percy froze, the eggs sizzling in the pan.

"Don't you have work?" He asked, and resumed stirring.

"Soon." Rachel walked over to Grace, placing a kiss on her head. "I'll see you in a week, okay baby?"

Grace nodded. "Bye, mommy."

Rachel left, not saying another word to Annabeth.

"A, can you grab some plates?" Percy asked, and Annabeth unglued herself from the spot of the dining room she was standing on, unmoved since Rachel had slammed the door.

She opened a cabinet, reaching up to grab three.

"Sorry about her." Percy said, putting the eggs and bacon on each. "Grace, you want a cinnamon roll?"

"Of course!" She said, running over to them. She looked up at Annabeth in confusion. "Do you live here?" She asked.

Annabeth laughed. "No, I just came over to see you guys." She said, leading her to her seat at the table and getting out a napkin for her.

"Can you be here every week?" Grace asked, playing with her fork.

Annabeth gave her a kiss. "Maybe." She said, giving a much needed vague answer and going back to the kitchen to grab the now full plates.

Percy kissed her head, placing a hand on her back. "I wouldn't mind if you were here every week." He said, grinning and Annabeth blushed.

"Come on, weirdo." She said, handing him a plate to carry. "Let's go eat."

They sat at his small table, Grace on the left, Annabeth facing the window and Percy opposite her. Grace kept the conversation light, telling them stories about school and her friends and her gymnastics classes. Annabeth's mind wandered, staring past Percy at the Manhattan skyline, feeling a sense of nostalgia but she didn't know about what. She glanced to her right, a picture of two other little kids sitting there, a diamond glittering on her left hand entering her head.

"Annabeth." Grace said, but her voice sounded far away. She didn't want to turn her head, because if she did it meant the daydream about life here went away. "Annabeth!" She said again, harsher this time and Percy was looking at her with concern.

"Sorry." Annabeth said, shaking her head. "What's up?"

"Don't you think we should go to the park today?" Grace asked.

Annabeth looked at Percy, who was trying not to laugh. "Sure?" She said, not sure if Percy had already said no or not.

Grace looked at her dad. "See, Daddy, we have to go now."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Maybe. Please finish your eggs." He said, getting a bite on the fork for her. She turned her attention back to breakfast, then ran to brush her teeth when she was done.

Annabeth helped Percy clear the table, setting the dirty dishes in the sink. "I got it." She said, leaning up to give him a kiss.

He grinned, still holding her as she turned around and started to put plates in the dishwasher, kissing her neck.

She tried to push him off her, but she was laughing. "Stop, you're distracting me." She complained, turning around to try and glare at him but it ended in another kiss.

"I like having you hear." He whispered, their faces so close.

She smiled, her breath coming in short gasps. "I like it too." She said, then giggled even though there was absolutely nothing funny. Percy's smile just got wider.

"Daddy!" Grace yelled from the bathroom. "Can you help me my toothbrush holder broke."

Percy laughed. "Be right there." He said, then gave Annabeth a final kiss before disappearing down the hallway. Annabeth tried to wipe the smile off her face, but failed. She could get used to this.

a/n: Hellooo, happy friday! So much luv in this chapter and we are so close to the end. Excited to show you guys my new story, there might even be a sneak peek in the next chapter of this, depending on how far I get. Love you all, and please review and let me know what you think!

ThisIsAwesomeness1825: Thank you! I'm still in the middle of my finals week too, three down one more to go. Good luck!

littlemorethannothing: Always a good way to procastinate studying :) Good luck on your finals!

(Going to try and respond to reviews now, so if you have any questions about the story or me, feel free to leave a review. I want to interact with you guys more!)

\- a


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Percy

His favorite part about Annabeth staying the night - which now happened almost every other night - was when their alarms would go off in the morning, and she would make the cutest incoherent noise and bury her face in the pillow like that was going to fix all of her problems. He would laugh, and kiss her neck until she roused herself just enough to stumble into the shower with him, the sky still dark at six in the morning.

Then there were the Sunday mornings, where she would stretch, her hair splayed out like a goddess on the pillow, a small smile playing on her lips as she leaned over to give him a kiss.

Then there were the mornings like this. It had only happened once, but Percy wanted it to happen over and over again, for the rest of his life. She was so good with Grace and everytime Percy saw them together he got this bubbly feeling in his chest. He couldn't even put into words how much he loved the two of them. It was this crazy, wonderful feeling and there was no way to explain it.

They were making cookies in the kitchen, Annabeth holding Grace's hand as she stirred the chocolate chips into the mix. Percy was supposed to be getting work done since he hadn't been exactly focused this past week, but how could he focus on annotating legal papers and responding to uptight emails when they were laughing and dancing around the kitchen?

"Alexa!" Grace said when they put the cookies in the oven. "Set a timer for -" She paused, looking up at Annabeth. "Annabeth, how long?"  
Annabeth laughed, ruffling her curls. "12 minutes." She said, starting the dishwasher.

"Alexa, set a timer for twelve minutes." Grace finished, dusting off her hands.

The happy pop music resumed, and Annabeth took Grace's hands, twirling her.

Grace laughed with delight, before screeching his name. "Daddy!" She said, running over to him and jumping on him.

Percy set her on his lap. "What's up?" He asked, as she glanced curiously at his computer screen.

"What's this?" She asked, pointing at a spreadsheet.

"Work." He responded, brushing her curls out of the way of her face.

"Oh." She said, still confused but she brushed it off. "Are Grandma and Grandpa coming to dinner?"

Percy chuckled. "I don't think so, why?"

Grace frowned. "They always come on Saturday's." She said. "Please, did you invite them?"

"Well, Grace, I just don't think they can come today." He said, closing the windows so she didn't accidentally shoot off an email to an executive old dude.

"Why?" She pressed.

Percy blushed not really wanting to explain to her that it would be awkward if they came with Annabeth here. "Grace, I don't know." He went with, keeping it vague.

"Annabeth!" She squealed, twisting to look at her. Percy tried not to wince. "Don't you want Grandma and Grandpa to come?" She asked, and Annabeth immediately looked at Percy. He pointed at his phone and sent her a quick text.

 **Only if you are okay with it, I'll call them.**

 **If you think you're ready to introduce me formally to your parents, then call them.** She sent back, giving him a small smile from across the room.

"Okay, I'll call Grandma and Grandpa." He said, and Grace hopped off, squealing, already dragging Annabeth to go play dolls with her. He stepped into his room, his mom picking up on the first ring.

"Percy?" She answered.

"Hey, you guys didn't make plans tonight, did you?" He asked, the sounds of cars honking and construction in the background. "Where are you?"

"Lex and 86th, we're getting on the 6. And no, just running some errands and then we were probably going to order Joe's, why?" She asked, and he could hear her shoes click as the crosswalk light probably turned to walk.

"Well, I think maybe we've changed our minds about you coming to dinner with us." Percy said, pacing back and forth in his room. He didn't know why he was so nervous.

"You mean you want us to meet Annabeth? Well, meet her on purpose this time." His mom said, and he rolled his eyes. Of course she had to throw that in there.

"Yes. If you're comfortable with it. I know it was a little awkward last time, but I'd really like it if you guys could come." He said, tapping his fingers against the bed frame.

"Of course, Percy." She said, her voice turning soft. "We'll be over at 6."

"Great." He said. "See you soon."

"Love you." She said, and he barely got out a response before he lost her in the dark tunnels of the subway.

Grace was ecstatic when she learned they were still coming, and she insisted that they go buy flowers because "Daddy's table is boring."

Annabeth laughed. "You're right, it is." She said, getting out Grace's coat and her own black one.

"Not even one full day with you two and you're already ganging up on me." He joked, helping Annabeth into her wool coat and getting his own.

They walked down 6th Avenue to the local flower shop, Grace running ahead and then stopping at the crosswalks to wait for them to catch up. It was Sunday, and midtown was almost dead quiet besides residents.

He slipped his hand into Annabeth's as they followed her, Percy wondering where she got her boundless energy from. Annabeth leaned her head on his shoulder, and he pressed a kiss to her head. He thought back to the last time they were all together, walking down Lex, how worried he had been that they looked like they were a family. Now, he wanted people to think that. He wanted people to think, _how lucky._

"I love you." He murmured for the first time since last night.

"I love you." She said, swinging their arms and looking up at a glittering skyscraper.

-0-

They decided to just meet his parents at Joe's because Grace was getting antsy in the house and he also figured if anything went seriously wrong they still had to control themselves because they were in public.

The three of them got their first, the Midtown location just a few short blocks from his apartment. They were seated at one of round communal tables, and Grace was given a coloring sheet. It was already busy since Joe's on a Sunday was a common thing for New York, but there was no one at their table yet.

His parents came, and his mom gave Annabeth and him big hugs.

"So," His mom said, once she was settled and coloring mindlessly with Grace. "Glad we could meet on some better terms this time." She said, giving Annabeth a warm smile.

Annabeth smiled, but she was tense. "I'm… sorry about that. I don't want to say too much, right now," She paused, her gaze directed towards Grace, "but I never meant for anybody to get hurt." She finished, slipping her hand into Percy's under the table, who squeezed it reassuringly.

Sally shook her head. "It's in the past. Percy mentioned you were an architect?"

"The best." Percy said, grinning.

Annabeth laughed. "I work for Safford's." She said, ignoring Percy's comment. "It's good so far, but eventually I'd like to open my own firm."

His mom raised her eyebrows, smiling. "Ambitious." She commented, and they paused conversation to order their dumplings.

Annabeth and his mom fell into easy conversation, talking about whatever girls talk about. They made fun of the decorations in his apartment, and when they somehow got on the topic of the last Bachelorette, Percy decided to tune out.

Paul chuckled, setting down his chopsticks. "They're getting along." He said as Percy helped Grace not make a mess of a dumpling.

"Fortunately," Percy said. "Rachel and my mom never got along great. Another red flag I ignored."

Paul shot him a sympathetic look. "You were young. You got married too soon."

Percy didn't respond, not wanting to get into it with Grace right there.

"Daddy?" Grace said, looking up at him.

"Yeah, lovebug." He pulled her hair out of her face while she took a bite.

"Can Mommy come to dinner too next time?" She asked, not knowing what she was implying.

Percy swallowed. Paul tried to fill the empty silence. "Uh, sweetie I don't think-" He started, but Percy just pushed his chair back.

"Excuse me." He murmured. He could feel Annabeth and his mom's eyes on him, but he just headed for the bathroom.

It was at least five minutes before he heard Annabeth's voice. "Percy?" She asked, knocking. "Perce, the bill came. I put your card down, but we're leaving soon."

He didn't respond, bracing his hands on the yellowing sink, a cracked mirror staring back at him.

"Babe, please let me in." She said. _Babe._ He wasn't sure when they had started calling each other that.

He unlocked the door, but didn't open it, and on her next attempt to rattle the doorknob she opened the door.

"Hi." She whispered, closing it behind her. "What's wrong?"

His eyes were tinged red, like he had been crying, and instead of responding he wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in the curve of her neck. She smelled like lemons and home and everything good in his life and then he started crying for real.

"Hey." She said, rubbing his back. "Hey, what happened?"

He pulled away, knowing they had to go back out there. "I'm sorry. Your shirt…" He trailed off, looking at the stains."

She smiled softly. "It's okay."

He shook his head, splashing water on his face to try and get rid of the red. "We should go back out."

"No." She took his hand again, stopping him from opening the door. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing. Just something Grace said." He said, going for the door again.

"Don't do this." She said. "Don't wall yourself off like this."

He looked at her, her grey eyes shining with something he couldn't place. Her hair was messy in the back from where he had grasped at it, and her lips were red and she looked so fucking beautiful and so he kissed her. Rough, and she let out a little wimper that turned him on even more.

"Percy." She gasped as he started to attack her neck, her head thrown back. "Percy, we have to leave."

He pulled away, kissing her more softly again. She was flush now, pressed against the dirty wall of the bathroom.

"Can we talk about it when we get home?" He asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. Let's go home."

There was a line when they got out, and they were thrown some pretty dirty looks from people who suspected the worst. His parents and Grace were waiting outside, and his mom luckily didn't push, just gave them all hugs goodbye.

"We'll get brunch soon." His mom promised to Annabeth.

Annabeth smiled. "I'd love that." She said. Percy involuntarily grinned. She was perfect.

"Grace." Annabeth said, while Percy gave hugs to Paul and his mom. "Let's zip up your coat." She said, leaning down to zip up her pink puffer.

His mom smiled up at him. "She's very good with her." She said, looking at the two of them, Grace laughing as Annabeth told her some joke, then kissing her cheek. "I like her."

Percy chuckled. "I know. Me too." He said, taking Grace's hand.

"Bye!" She yelled after her grandparents, as they went the other direction towards the subway. Annabeth took Grace's other hand since it was late now and she couldn't go running down the street like she could during the daytime, and they set off towards home.

-0-

"Stay tonight." Percy said. They had put Grace to bed, the two of them. He couldn't remember the last time he and Rachel had put Grace to bed together.

Annabeth laughed, picking up a toy and putting it in the basket. They were cleaning, since Grace wreaked havoc on any space she was in for more than an hour. Everything was so… normal. They didn't fight - well, much - and they did chores together, and they talked about life, and it was everything Percy had been missing the past few years of his life. They had only been together for a little over a month, but it felt like it had been years and years.

"Tell me what happened at dinner, and I'll stay." She bartered, but her the sparkle in her eyes meant she was only joking.

Percy sighed, wiping down the kitchen counter. "I…" He paused, collecting his thoughts. She came closer, boosting herself up onto the counter, swinging her legs clad in old grey sweats of his. "Grace asked if Rachel could come to dinner next time. Like, all of us."

Annabeth stilled, staring at the ground. "Oh." She said, quietly.

He came over to her, standing between her legs and gripping her hips. "I just kind of freaked out. It wasn't a big deal."

She pushed his hair out of his eyes. "Maybe we should."

"What?" He asked, dragging his eyes from where they had landed on her lips to her eyes again.

"I mean, maybe it might be a good idea. I don't want to… assume, but if we're all going to be around each other for a…while," She spoke slowly, carefully as she chose words with vague meaning. "I think it would be important for Grace to see us all as a family. That her mom's included too."

He kissed her, wrapping her legs around his waist, her hands coming up to grasp his face. "I love you." He murmured, over and over again.

She laughed, pulling away for a second. "Wait, wait." She said, giggling.

"What?" He asked breathlessly, going back for another kiss.

She spoke when he moved to her neck, tracing a hot line of kisses down the curve of her breast. "About this whole… staying over thing." She said, pausing as she let out a choked moan when he pulled down her shirt to gain easier access. "Every weekend, no weeknights, and I get a drawer."

He grinned, coming back up to her face, closed eyes and bruised lips, her head thrown back as he traced patterns on her inner thigh. "Deal." He said, undoing the button on her jeans.

a/n: It's Tuesday and I'm going home for winter break! So excited. Hope you guys enjoy this, please review and let me know what you think

-a


	26. Chapter 26

Hi everyone,

I am so sorry for the delay on this story. I went home for winter break, and decided to take a break from all work, including writing. This story, so far, has been my biggest success on here and I will be forever grateful for the love it has received. The next chapter, which I hope to have up within the next week or so, will be the epilogue. I felt like I was dragging on with the end, and I have decided it's best to end it where Chapter 25 left off. Of course, you'll all get to see a happy ending and love, but the story is ending.

I have started a few new stories, and I am hoping to get a new story going within the week as well. So, please if you enjoyed this one, go check it out.

Thank you all for your continued love throughout the past few months. This story will always be my first baby.

-a


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